


Aetherius

by reyna0w0



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Angel/Human Relationships, Angst, Character Death, Death, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Guardian Angels, Heartbreak, Heaven, M/M, Romance, Tragic Romance, angel - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-13
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-18 03:02:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 23
Words: 26,070
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28736169
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/reyna0w0/pseuds/reyna0w0
Summary: A human and an angel fall in love, how will it turn out?
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji & Bokuto Koutarou, Miya Atsumu/Sakusa Kiyoomi
Comments: 2
Kudos: 20





	1. Chapter 1

Akaashi never meant for any of this to happen.

It all began when Akaashi revealed himself to Bokuto Koutarou. 

They say that everyone has a guardian angel protecting them from misfortune. But if your bad karma overweighs your good karma, the angel will leave and never return. But, of course, there are exceptions.

They also say that the guardian angel is invisible to everyone but they can show themselves to the one they protect. Though, it is such a rare case for angels to show themselves. They tend to prefer to do their duty while remaining invisible and uninvolved with their assigned humans. 

But Bokuto was one of the few souls who managed to get his guardian angel to show himself.

**“If my guardian angel truly exists, please appear before me.”**

**“Please so I can believe everything in this world happens for a reason.”**

Akaashi heard every word Bokuto said. He knew exactly why Bokuto said such words, after all, he was there watching over Bokuto as he was going through tough times. 

Akaashi protected him from major misfortunes but if it was planned by the Lord; he wasn’t allowed to interfere with it.

Watching over Bokuto from the day he was born was Akaashi’s purpose, his duty. Over time, Akaashi grew fond of the human he had to protect. Akaashi was a bit different from most angels. He was sympathetic and cared for even the humans besides the one he was assigned. Not that he could actually do anything for them but he was compassionate.

Leading from this kind-heartedness and hearing those words from Bokuto, he did something he normally wouldn’t do,  **“Will you really feel better if I do?”**

Bokuto, shocked from hearing the voice out of nowhere, looked around frantically in his apartment. 

**“Yes,”** He replied after a moment. 

**“Alright,”** Akaashi said. **“Close your eyes.”**

Bokuto did as he was told and he felt a gush of wind. 

**“You can open your eyes now,”** Akaashi said. 

Bokuto’s eyes fluttered open. 

In front of him was the most ethereal sight he had ever seen in his life. 

The sight of Akaashi stole his breath away.

His knees gave out and he collapsed onto his bed.

The soft, slightly messy black hair and those piercing gun metallic eyes that stare seem to stare into his soul. Not only his face but those majestic pair of wings enveloping him, giving him the aura of a being that transcends humanity. 

Bokuto couldn’t keep his eyes off of Akaashi. He just stood there gaping at the angel before him. Akaashi also stood there, awkward. Not knowing what to do because it was the first time he showed himself to a human, let alone interacting with one. 

**“Uh...can you stop staring at me?...”** Akaashi said, finding the stare of those golden eyes a bit unnerving. 

**“Oh, sorry!”** Bokuto said, snapping out of his trance. 

**“Um...I’m Bokuto Koutarou! Nice to meet you, I guess?”**

Akaashi let out a little chuckle.  **“I know who you are, Koutarou. I’ve known you since you were born.”**

**“Ah! That’s right! What’s your name?”** Bokuto asked, eyes gleaming.

He had forgotten the reason why he even asked his guardian angel to show himself. He was too absorbed in the fact Akaashi actually showed up in front of him. He was really hitting a low with everything when he made that plea but now he was just entranced by the being before him. It gave him hope that everything that happens for a reason..

**“Akaashi…”**

**“Akaashi? It’s a pretty name!”** Bokuto said, grinning.

Akaashi smiled, wondering how this human managed to be so precious. Akaashi had always been fond of humans, especially the goofy one who he was assigned to protect. Though, he never imagined in his angel life that he would appear before the very human.

**“I didn’t know that my guardian angel was this pretty,”** Bokuto said, gazing softly at Akaashi.

Akaashi felt his cheeks heat up, not knowing how to respond he fiddled with his fingers. He had never interacted with a human before and their customs were something he only observed but never experienced. 

**“Why did you show up in front of me?”** Bokuto asked, his smile turning sad and tired.

**“Because you asked,”** Akaashi said, matter-of-factly.

**“Do you appear in front of anyone who asks?”**

**“No...It’s because I want you to stay strong and believe in our creator,”** Akaashi said softly.

**“It’s hard but you appearing in front of me gives me a little hope,”** Bokuto said, tiredly.

**“Will you show yourself again?”**

**“I’m so tired right now,”** Bokuto said, eyes blinking sleepily.

Bokuto’s eyes closed tight and didn’t open again. 

**“I will. Don’t worry. Sleep well,”** Akaashi whispered, pulling covers over the sleeping Bokuto.

Turning invisible again, his wings unfolded and he flew back home, to the Celestial Realm. 

Thoughts of his actions flooding his mind the entire way. 

**“Hey, you’re back, Akaashi,”** A fellow angel said.

**“Yeah, Suga. I’m back,”** Akaashi replied.

The two angels head to the angel dorms. 

Flopping on his bed, Suga asked,  **“So, are you going to tell me what happened?”**

**“You look like you got hit by a truck.”**

**“Is it that obvious?”** Akaashi asked, tilting his head.

**“Or maybe I’m just an expert on you,”** Suga replied with a goofy wink.

Akaashi chuckled as Suga continued,  **“You can tell me anything, you know.”**

**“Yeah. Thanks,”** Akaashi replied, giving Suga a small smile. 

**“Have you ever shown yourself in front of your assigned human?”** Akaashi asked.

**“Uhh...no. Why? Wait, did you?!”** Suga replied, shocked.

Akaashi slowly nodded his head. 

**“I-It’s not forbidden but I haven’t met an angel who has done that…,”** Suga said quietly. 

**“Why though?”** Suga asked, regaining his composure.

**“I...I don’t know...It was a spontaneous decision…,”** Akaashi replied, weakly. 

**“I guess it’s fine. Who knows it might be fun to talk to a human,”** Suga said with a grin.

**“I’m not sure but I know he’s a kind soul. Ever since he was a child. Kind but hurt by the world. Easily discouraged but also easily encouraged. I hope the Lord has great things in store for him,”** Akaashi said, fondly talking about Bokuto.

**“Well, as long as you do your duty, whatever you do in your free time is none of our concern,”** Suga said, patting Akaashi. 

**“So, how’s it on your end?”** Akaashi asked.

**“Don’t even get me started!”** Suga huffed.

**“That man needs to take a break and rely on people! He keeps on taking the cases by himself and refusing to let others take some of his work. I understand he wants to solve as many for the sake of people but it’s so frustrating to see him collapse from fatigue!”**

**“Sounds rough. Humans are strange creatures but we’re strange too,”** Akaashi said, chuckling.

**“I’m going to go to the library,”** He added.

**“Alright. I’m gonna rest,”** Suga said, collapsing on his bed after his rant. 

Akaashi smiled and left for the library to find something about angels who showed themselves to humans. 

  
  
  
  



	2. Chapter 2

Bokuto’s eyes fluttered open as daylight peeked through his curtains, light hitting his face directly. He sat up in his bed, recounting the previous day’s events. Wondering if it was a dream, he slid out of bed. He immediately fell back in it while yelling,  **“Woah!”**

Sitting on the couch of his apartment was none other than the ethereal angel that showed himself the day before.  **“I thought it was a dream,”** Bokuto muttered to himself, finding himself admiring the stunning angel again.

Akaashi seemed to be out of it since he was just staring out the window aimlessly even after Bokuto yelled. His head wasn’t in the right place as he debated whether if showing himself to Bokuto was a good thing or not.

It took Bokuto a couple of finger snaps to break his trance. Akaashi was prone to losing sight of his surroundings when he was deep in thought. 

**“Oh, Koutarou, you’re awake,”** Akaashi said, snapping out of his thoughts.

**“Oh! You really showed yourself again!,”** Bokuto said, lighting up.

**“I did say I would,”** Akaashi replied, smiling.

Bokuto felt his cheeks warm up. That smile made him feel a bunch of emotions. The angel in front of him reassured him about many things. He could truly believe that things happened for a good reason and that he had a purpose, giving him the willpower to get through every obstacle in his life or at least try to overcome them. 

**“That makes me happy!”** Bokuto said with a huge grin.

The signature grin Akaashi was so familiar with.

**“Can you please keep quiet about me?”** Akaashi asked, thinking that he would need to erase Bokuto’s memories if he refused.

He couldn’t risk Bokuto revealing the existence of angels to everyone.

**“Hmm? Sure. I don’t think I have heard of anyone meeting their angel besides rumours. My lips are sealed,”** Bokuto said.

Akaashi was a bit surprised by the intelligent answer Bokuto gave. After all, Bokuto wasn’t an intellectual; he was rather simple-minded. Though, he trusted that Bokuto would keep a secret.

**“Thank you,”** Akaashi replied.

**“I’ve got to meet Kuroo so I gotta go. You’re gonna be following me, right?”** Bokuto asked.

**“Most of the time. I’ll stay invisible though. Don’t want people to think you’re mad,”** Akaashi said.

**“I don’t mind if they think that if I get to talk to you,”** Bokuto said, grinning. 

Akaashi’s face flushed a light pink. **“G-go already! You’re going to be late!”**

**“Okay, I’m going,”** Bokuto said, grabbing a few things. 

Akaashi masked himself again as Bokuto headed out the door. Akaashi floated and followed him to a cafe. 

Bokuto stepped into the cafe only to be greeted by the one and only, owner of the rooster bedhead, Kuroo Tetsurou.  **“Hey hey hey!”** Bokuto said to Kuroo.

**“Oya, you’re on time for once,”** Kuroo said with a smirk.

**“I can be on time too!”** Bokuto said as he puffed his cheeks, feigning anger.

Kuroo walked up to him, raising his fist to which Bokuto did the same. Their signature fist bump. 

The two chattered like usual as if nothing had changed even though they hadn’t met in a while.

Akaashi smiled at the sight. He obviously knew about Kuroo since he was a good friend of Bokuto.

They ordered and got immersed in catching up with each other’s lives. Naturally, the conversation easily shifted to volleyball and Bokuto’s expression turned a little grim. Kuroo’s cat-like eyes observed him quietly. He knew something was wrong but he decided that Bokuo would tell him if he wanted to. So Bokuto changed the topic and asked Kuroo about how his relationship with Kenma was going.

The two fooled around like back in high school. Their crackhead energy never changed despite being away most of the time. After a good catch up session, Bokuto bid farewell to Kuroo and returned to his apartment. 

Volleyball stuck on his mind ever since Kuroo brought it up as he walked home. As much as Bokuto loved volleyball, it was the very sport that led to his block. An extended block that the coach even told him not to come to the practice for a while. 

He had become unable to make his spikes as accurate and powerful as before. His game was off and he couldn’t keep up as well as he could before. All of which made him even more frustrated with himself. He thought he had stopped over-relying on her teammates and hitting a block since high school but apparently not. 

To Akaashi though, it was because Bokuto had been overworking himself. He burned out completely but being off his game was what fueled his frustration and helplessness. 

Cheerful as he was, this block took a toll on him. Since he made up his mind to not to over-rely on his friends, he chose not to talk to anyone about it; fear that he would revert to being the ‘ace’ that was coddled by his team. 

Bokuto entered his apartment and collapsed on the couch. 

**“Nee, Akaashi, why do you think I can’t play as I normally do?”** Bokuto asked, quietly.

The subject was weighing on him every second he didn’t spend playing volleyball. But he didn’t know how to get out of his rut and not playing was driving him insane. Talking to his friends was not an option; he decided he never wanted to over-rely on his friends again. 

But Akaashi, maybe Akaashi had an answer. 

Akaashi heard him clearly, making himself visible. He gazed softly at Bokuto who had his head downcasted, hair drooping down as well. 

**“Well, from what I’ve seen...Maybe you should take a break. Try occupying yourself with something else. Go out and have fun. I’m sure taking a break will help you. I think you have been focusing too much on trying to do things perfectly that you can’t do it right. Remember, just do what feels right. Isn’t that how you always played volleyball? I’ve watched you all my life so I know that very well,”** Akaashi replied.

Bokuto listened as Akaashi spoke. His voice was soft and gentle; it made him feel like he was floating. He listened to every word carefully and realized Akaashi was right. 

**“Maybe talk to your teammates and ask how they deal with it,”** Akaashi added.

Bokuto’s golden irises whipped to Akaashi,  **“You’re right! I’m getting nowhere by just moping around!”**

**“Let me text them.”**

Akaashi nodded and let him do this thing.


	3. Chapter 3

**MSBY BJ**

Bokuto: HEY HEY HEY GUYS! ARE YOU GUYS FREE TOMORROW?”

Atsumu: Yeah, no practice tmrw

Hinata: YEAH!

Bokuto: NICE! YOU GUYS WANNA GO SOMEWHERE?

Hinata: Sounds fun! I’m down!

Sakusa: no

Bokuto: aw :(

Atsumu: Sure, where though?

Atsumu: I’ll get omiomi to come, don’t worry

Sakusa: fuck you

Atsumu: yes please

Sakusa: …

Hinata: Where should we go?

Bokuto: Hmm, any suggestions?

Atsumu: H I K I N G 

Sakusa: rejected, too much dust and insects 

Atsumu: :(

Hinata: What about a movie night instead of going out?

Bokuto: That sounds nice!

Atsumu: Yeah!

Sakusa: Acceptable 

Bokuto: Are we all decided?

Hinata: YEP

Bokuto: Who’s place?

Atsumu: We can do our place

Hinata: Roger, I’ll bring the popcorn and we can order some takeout

Atsumu: Come in your pajamas! You guys can stay over, the ultimate movie night~

Sakusa: rejected

Atsumu: Aw come on! I’ll clean the entire house afterwards, promise! 

Sakusa: You better start disinfecting right now 

Atsumu: As long as you agree to the plan!

Sakusa: ok

Atsumu: Should I give you a massage, omiomi?

Sakusa: no

Atsumu: Aw, how cold :(

Bokuto: I’m down for sleeping over! 

Hinata: Yeah!

Atsumu: Tomorrow at 7 pm at our place!

Bokuto: Let’s gooooo

Hinata: YAY! 

Bokuto grinned as he looked at the texts. 

Akaashi observed him do that. It was heartwarming as Bokuto looked the best when he was cheerful. His positive energy usually spread to others, including Akaashi. 

He smiled, letting out a small sigh. He hoped Bokuto would feel better soon. Luckily, it was the offseason so he didn’t have any proper matches otherwise it would have broken him if he was unable to play in official matches. Not being able to play volleyball is the absolute worst thing in the world to Bokuto. 

**“Akaashi! They all agreed!”** Bokuto said, turning to him like an excited puppy.

Akaashi's smile widened,  **“I’m glad. Hope you’ll have fun and feel better.”**

Bokuto’s heart pace quickened; Akaashi’s smile was too precious. 

He looked at the angel before him with admiration. Akaashi felt his stare and said,  **“Why do you do that?”**

**“Do what?”**

**“Stare at me…,”** Akaashi said quietly.

**“Oh! I do that without thinking. You’re just that pretty,”** Bokuto said sheepishly.

Akaashi full-blown turns red, heart racing. It never did that before. 

_ ‘Am I sick? Wait, angels don’t get sick. What is this feeling?’ _

Bokuto chuckled and Akaashi looked at him, confused.

**“Even angels get flustered, huh?”** Bokuto said.

**“Well, we are like humans so we experience emotions except we don’t age or get ill. But we do need rest,”** Akaashi explained.

**“We’re more similar than I thought,”** Bokuto said, golden eyes meeting Akaashi’s gun-metallic ones. 

**“Thanks for saying all that before, by the way,”** Bokuto said.

**“No problem. You can always talk to me,”** Akaashi said.

**“Plan is tomorrow and I’ve got nothing to do today. Say, you wanna go to the planetarium with me?”** Bokuto asked.

**“I mean, I have to follow you so sure I guess,”** Akaashi replied.

**“Great!”** Bokuto said, getting up.

Bokuto was quickly out the door, taking a bus to the nearest planetarium. Impulsive day trips; Bokuto loved them. Akaashi floated beside him and occasionally said a few words, mostly shushing him because he seemed like a lunatic to be talking to thin air. Bokuto didn’t care though. 

Akaashi managed to get Bokuto to put his earphones in and talk while looking straight ahead so it would look like he was talking on the phone. 

**“Nee, Akaashi, do you like stars?”** Bokuto asked.

**“I think they are rather pretty from the earth,”** Akaashi responded. 

**“Great! Cus I love stars!”** Bokuto grinned.

Bokuto made his way to the planetarium, happily chatting with Akaashi and not looking like a fool thanks to Akaashi. 

**“Here we are!”** Bokuto bellowed. 

Bokuto bought himself a ticket; luckily since Akaashi wasn’t visible, he didn’t need a ticket. 

_ ‘Score!’ _

Surprisingly, there were few people there. But it just made the experience more out of this world. Sparkling stars all over the sky, more like, the ceiling. Truly, a wondrous experience. 

Bokuto turned to Akaashi who was staring at the stars in awe; the shooting stars twinkling in his eyes. For a moment, Bokuto forgot how to breathe. Only until Akaashi turned to him, he remembered that he needed to breathe.

**“Wow, this is gorgeous!”** Bokuto said.

**“Yeah, it’s stunning,”** Akaashi replied.

Though when Bokuto said that, he meant both the stars and Akaashi. Maybe mostly Akaashi. He really hadn’t met anyone like Akaashi. It made sense that he was an angel, a transcendent being. 

Bokuto felt as if he had known Akaashi all his life; the peaceful feeling he gets from being around him is incomparable. 

Technically, Akaashi was by his side all his life but he had never met him before and he knew nothing about him.

Yet, he found him alluring.

His soft voice, the way he fiddled with his fingers when he was nervous, the way he smiles, his ravishing gun metallic eyes, and his hair that fell perfectly on his face. 

His majestic wings and full white garment only accentuated his beauty.

Akaashi Keiji was gorgeous and Bokuto Koutarou was in awe.

Bokuto was entranced by Akaashi that the stars in the planetarium morphed into a blurry background. Akaashi didn’t seem to notice him staring since he was too absorbed in admiring the stars. 

Usually, Akaashi left for the Celestial Realm after Bokuto went to sleep and never actually stayed to see actual stars or even ones at planetariums. To him, it was a new experience. One he wouldn’t have experienced if he hadn’t shown himself to. 

But, was it for the better or the worse?

Bokuto and Akaashi stayed in the planetarium till closing time, talking about the most random things and stargazing. 

They promised to go stargazing in the mountains as well. Bokuto laughed a lot and Akaashi smiled a lot. The two spent a peaceful and cheerful time together. 

On the way back, the sky was already dark. Bokuto chattered as they headed home while Akaashi listened to him talk. These two were already like close friends. 

To Akaashi, he had known Bokuto since he was born but to Bokuto, he was someone he met recently but felt like home. Someone with who he could unapologetically truly be himself with. 

Was it because he was his guardian angel?

The more Bokuto talked to Akaashi, the more he became fond of him. 

After all, Akaashi was caring and gentle. 

Calm and collected; the complete opposite of Bokuto but maybe that was why they resonated with one another. 

Opposites attract, after all. 

  
  



	4. Chapter 4

**“Kaashi!”**

**“Do you mind if I call you that?”** Bokuto asked, grinning.

**“It’s fine, Koutarou,”** Akaashi replied.

**“I can’t wait to see the guys! Haven’t seen them since I stopped going to practice,”** Bokuto droned on.

**“I’m glad. I hope this is exactly what you need.”**

**“Let’s go!”** Bokuto bellowed, grabbing a small bag.

The bag consisted of his movie night/sleepover necessities. To Bokuto, it only meant his pajamas and his favorite pillow. 

Thank Lord Akaashi was there to make sure he brought all the things he needed including toiletries, another set of clothes for the next day, his phone charger, and all other essentials. 

Akaashi wasn’t very up to date with sleepovers or movie nights but when Bokuto slept after their little planetarium outing, he read up on it in the Celestial Realm library. 

Bokuto chattered on the way to Atsumu’s condo. Akaashi mostly listened to him talk and replied sparsely.

Listening to Bokuto talk was the norm after all even before he revealed himself to Bokuto. 

That is the fate of every guardian angel; protecting their assigned human till the end of their journey. 

**“Tsum-Tsum, Open up!”** Bokuto yells as he spammed the doorbell.

**“Coming!”** Atsumu’s voice came from inside along with the sound of feet shuffling.

The door swung open and Atsumu grinned,  **“Come in! Omi-kun is inside.”**

**“What about Hinata?”** Bokuto asked, following Atsumu inside as Akaashi floated behind him. 

**“He’s on his way, picking up some snacks,”** Atsumu responded.

Atsumu led him to the living room and Sakusa was on the couch, frowning and scrolling through his three times sanitized phone. 

**“HEY HEY HEY!”** Bokuto greeted.

Sakusa raised his eyes, scrunching his face. The loud one had arrived. He promptly ignored Bokuto’s greeting and shifted his attention back to his phone.

Akaashi noticed two other angels there; he gave them a curt nod and they did the same. 

Angels could see each other but refrained from communicating on earth to make their job easier. They could communicate with one another but they usually chose not to. 

The four guardian angels knew each other but never talked, only acknowledged each other’s presence since the MSBY boys often practiced and hung out together. 

As Bokuto was about to say something, the doorbell rang. Atsumu stalked to the entrance with Bokuto following him. Atsumu opened the door to reveal the orange head, holding a bag of snacks and a huge grin on his face. 

**“Tsumu-san! Bokuto-san!”**

**“We’re all here now,”** Atsumu said, letting Hinata inside.

The group shuffled back to the living room. **“Hey, Omi-San!”**

Sakusa looked at Hinata and said,  **“Hey.”**

Out of the three idiots, Sakusa usually only acted nicely with Hinata. 

Atsumu was a little shit and Bokuto was way too loud for his liking. 

**“Leave your bags, etc. in that corner. Omi-kun, turn on the telly. Shoyo, bring the snacks to the kitchen,”** Atsumu ordered.

Sakusa sneered at Atsumu, not wanting to comply with his somewhat authoritative tone. But he did anyway but he planned to give Atsumu shit later on. 

Hinata and Bokuto dropped their bags, Hinata followed Atsumu to the kitchen with his bag of snacks. While Bokuto plopped down on the couch, further from Sakusa since he’d retaliate otherwise. 

He winked at Akaashi and Sakusa’s guardian angel looked at Akaashi curiously, wondering if he saw correctly or not. Atsumu and Hinata’s angels had followed them to the kitchen so they didn’t see. 

Sakusa’s guardian angel, Komori, kept his eyes on Bokuto, wondering if he could see Akaashi. He saw Bokuto wink at Akaashi though. He was merely intrigued since he too had never met an angel who revealed himself to their humans. He wasn't a hundred percent sure if he could though so he peered at the two. 

Sakusa browsed Netflix to choose a movie, Bokuto chirping in his recommendations that get immediately rejected by Sakusa. Atsumu and Hinata return with the popcorn and other snacks while Sakusa and Bokuto lowkey argue over what to watch. Atsumu put all the snacks on the coffee table in front of the couches. 

The lot argued over which movie to watch and eventually settled on The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia. 

Atsumu ordered the rest to change into their pajamas. He got himself changed quickly into baby blue striped pajamas and gathered all his pillows and blankets and tossed them onto his couch. 

Sakusa returned first, donning black pajamas that were covered with stars. Bokuto and Hinata ran out, wearing grey owl-patterned pajamas and bright orange baby crow pajamas respectively. 

Everyone looked super cozy. The angels decided to make a small circle behind the couch since they weren’t particularly interested in human entertainment and shrank in size to conserve energy. 

They had the ability to be compact enough to sit on their human's shoulder. It was more convenient, after all.

Hinata dived into the comfortable pile of pillows and Bokuto dived on top of Hinata; almost choking the baby crow. Atsumu laughed at the two while Sakusa stared at them with disdain. 

Everyone settled into the pillows and blankets snugly. Hinata and Bokuto on the left side and Sakusa and Atsumu on the left side. Atsumu started the movie on Netflix and passed the popcorn around. 

The whole movie was, so to speak, a mess. If they even actually watched the movie. They were screaming and yelling because, of course, they chose a horror movie and they were all cowards. 

By the end of the multiple jumpscares, Hinata and Bokuto were hugging each other, Hinata’s baby crow plushie in between them, close to passing out. Whereas, Atsumu was grabbing Sakusa by the waist. The latter giving Atsumu the deadest look along with the most uninterested expression. They were ALL screaming besides Sakusa, of course. 

The angel group behind the humans were quietly judging the group, wondering why humans liked indulging in such entertainment if they were so terrified of it. The group ignored the humans and had their little discussion since they didn't have anything better to do. 

Because if any of them died from fear, it’d be part of their destiny. Not a misfortune to be protected by the angels. 


	5. Chapter 5

Komori decided it was his time to ask the question that was on his mind,  **“Akaashi-san, right?”**

**“I’ve heard of you in the Celestial Realm. This is the first time talking to you, though. I’m Komori.”**

Akaashi nodded as Komori asked,  **“Akaashi-san, did you reveal yourself to your human?”**

Akaashi was taken by surprise, he didn’t think he was that transparent. He slowly nodded, hoping these angels weren’t the type that hated the idea of showing themselves to their humans. 

**“Oh wow! You’re the first angel I know who did that!”** Komori said, excitedly.

**“You really did that? I’m Kita, by the way, Atsumu’s guardian angel.”**

**“Why’d you do that? And I’m Kageyama, Hinata’s.”**

The three of them looked at Akaashi curiously. Akaashi sighed in relief that they weren’t against the idea completely, just intrigued.

**“Yeah, I revealed myself to him not too long ago,”** Akaashi confirmed. 

**“I knew I wasn't seeing things when Bokuto-san winked at you!”** Komori said. 

Akaashi flushed, embarrassed that someone saw that. They needed to be more careful. Why though? There shouldn’t be anything to hide. But then and again, some angels weren’t very keen on the idea. 

Akaashi sighed, his mind swirling around, unable to make a proper opinion of this thing. He didn’t know any other angel who did the same either so he was completely lost. He didn’t know if it was right or wrong. 

**“I actually know an angel who did that. We’re old pals. Suna is the guardian angel of Atsumu’s twin brother, Osamu,”** Kita revealed. 

**“Oh wow! More angels do that than I thought,”** Komori replied.

Kageyama couldn’t wrap his mind around it, **“Isn’t it easier to just do your job anonymously?”**

**“Depends on the angel, I guess,”** Kita replied.

Akaashi nodded in agreement, He was surprised to find out that someone else did the same. **“Is there a way for me to find this “Suna” angel?”** Akaashi asked, interested to know more about angels that did the same as him. 

**“He stays at the southern angel dorms. We room together,”** Kita answered.

**“I’m at the northern angel dorms,”** Akaashi said.

**“Cool, want to meet up at the angel square when these fools pass out for the night?”** Kita asked,

**“Yeah, sounds good,”** Akaashi replied. 

Though, it was going to be a long night since the human group was still screaming pure terror with Sakusa dreading his choice to join the movie night. 

Most of the snacks got left on the table; their eyes glued to the tv screen as they got the biggest scares of their life. The angels looked at the humans and sighed, wondering why humans chose to do that to themselves. 

Somehow, they made it till the end, and finally, they all relaxed; sighing in relief. 

**“That was terrifying!”** Bokuto quivered.

**“I know right, I thought I was gonna piss myself,”** Atsumu added.

**“If you fucking did that, I would rip you apart myself,”** Sakusa retorted, voice laced with pure venom.

Atsumu gulped,  **“I-it was an exaggeration, Omi-kun!”**

**“I don’t think I can sleep tonight,”** Hinata said, terror still evident on his face after the movie and then Sakusa’s threat to kill Atsumu.

**“It wasn’t even scary,”** Sakusa deadpanned.

**“You’re scary, Omi-omi!”** Atsumu said. 

Sakusa frowned, scaring Hinata even more than before. 

Atsumu got up and wobbled over to turn on the lights, slowly recovering from the horror movie.  **“Who said it was a good idea to watch a horror movie?”** He asked.

**“You did, Atsumu-san…,”** Hinata replied. 

**“Right…,”** Atsumu said, regretting his life choices.

**“Come here, you big baby,”** Sakusa said, sighing and arms spread open. 

**“Omiomi…,”** Atsumu said, tearing up slightly.

He wobbled back to Sakusa and fell into his arms. Bokuto and Hinata just looked at the two; Hinata lowkey fanboying and Bokuto wondering if he could have the same kind of relationship with…

Sakusa and Atsumu were open about their relationship with their friends. The entire team was supportive of them. Atsumu loved flaunting their relationship but Sakusa didn’t like it very much. 

Though, he put up with it since Atsumu liked doing that. Sakusa acted mean to Atsumu but he truly cared about him and occasionally showed his soft side, only to Atsumu though. 

Atsumu snuggled into Sakusa’s chest while the latter stroked his hair. For someone who hated germs, he didn’t mind holding Atsumu. 

Although, Atsumu had become way more hygienic after dating Sakusa. 

Atsumu lifted his head, realizing that they aren’t alone, and let go of his beloved, Sakusa frowned and tugged his pajama shirt. **“Later,”** Atsumu whispered. 

**“Fine…,”** Sakusa spat, sitting up.

Another thing that was unusual about Sakusa was that he loved cuddling with his boyfriend. 

**“Let’s order pizza and finish the snacks. They were forgotten as we watched the movie,”** Atsumu said, taking out his smartphone. 

**“Pepperoni!”** Bokuto yelled.

**“Margherita!”** Hinata added.

**“...”**

Sakusa didn't join the yells of pizza orders. Atsumu knew exactly which one he wanted anyway. Atsumu phoned the pizza place that Sakusa knew was very keen on their hygiene and ordered four large pizzas: Pepperoni, Margherita, BBQ Chicken, and Meat Lover’s. 

After ordering, Atsumu joined the others in munching on the vast variety of convenience store snacks that Hinata had bought. The four of them chattered as they ate snacks and waited for the pizza while the angels had their own little chatting session. 

The chatting session was more like a rant session with a little sprinkle of mutual adoration for SakuAtsu. 

The doorbell rang and Hinata ran to the door, Atsumu trailing behind him. Bokuto and Sakusa were left in the living room. Bokuto randomly asked, **“How’d you know that you liked Tsum-Tsum in that way?”**

Sakusa frowned, **“...Don’t know. Just felt it, I guess.”**

**“Is that so?”** Bokuto said, sinking into the pillows and closing his eyes.

_ ‘Will I know eventually?’ _

Sakusa replied,  **“...Yeah.”**

Bokuto’s eyes fluttered open and a huge smile wrapped around his face,  **“TIME FOR PIZZA THEN!”**

Sakusa frowned, the loud and hyper Bokuto had made his comeback. 

Hinata and Atsumu come back with four boxes of pizza. They dropped it on the coffee table as the four of them devoured the piping hot pizza. 

Nothing beats greasy junk food on a day off. Surprisingly they did eat quite healthy most of the days otherwise they wouldn’t be able to play to the best of their abilities. 

After devouring the pizza, the lot passed out on the huge couch, just laying there in a food coma. Again, the angels wondered why humans stuffed themselves till they were going to burst. 

Lights dim, melodic music playing in the background, the four sprawled on the couch, drifting to sleep slowly. Hinata passed out first and then Bokuto. Sakusa stirred and got up, nudging Atsumu who grunted since he was about to fall asleep. Sakusa mouthed, **“R-O-O-M.”**

Atsumu nodded and slowly got up. The two headed over to Atsumu’s room and cuddled and fell asleep in each other’s arms. 

Kageyama left first and then Kita left for the Celestial Realm with Komori after Atsumu and Sakusa were fast asleep. Akaashi waited even though Bokuto was already fast asleep.

Akaashi walked up to Bokuto, sleeping soundly, with a smile on his face. He moved away the strands of hair on Bokuto’s face, wished him pleasant dreams, and whispered, **“Sleep well.”**

Then he flew back to the Celestial Realm to the place he agreed to meet up with Kita, determined to get a better perspective on the whole thing. 


	6. Chapter 6

Akaashi met up with Kita at Angel Square. The angel with light grey and black tips led Akaashi to his dorm room which he shared with Suna, the angel who also revealed himself to his assigned human. 

Akaashi felt jittery; partial excitement since he didn’t know any angel who had done something like that and partial nervousness for what Suna might say.

Thoughts raced through his mind as he followed Kita; twisting and convulsing, turning into a mush of anxiety. 

Kita pushed the door open, revealing his simple dorm which was identical to Akaashi’s. 

Angels didn’t care much about interior design.

There was an angel inside presumably ‘Suna’ and he was reading a book. 

He lifted his gaze from the book and onto Kita and Akaashi.

He closed the book,  **“Who’s this?”**

**“Akaashi, this is Suna. Suna, this is Akaashi,”** Kita introduced.

Akaashi gave him a nod and Suna did the same. 

**“He wanted to talk to you about a few things if you don’t mind,”** Kita added.

**“Not at all,”** Suna said, giving Akaashi a close-eyed smile. 

A mysterious smile where Akaashi couldn’t tell if he was genuinely okay with talking or not. 

**“I’ll leave you two be,”** Kita said, taking his leave.

**“Thank you, Kita-san!”** Akaashi called out to which Kita waved in response. 

**“So what did you want to talk about?”** Suna asked. 

**“Hope you don’t mind but Kita-san told me that you revealed yourself to your human…,”** Akaashi started.

Suna looked at him, slowly nodding,  **“Yeah, that’s right.”**

Akaashi trod lightly, not wanting to offend Suna in any way.

**“If you’re okay with it, can you tell me more about it? Because I recently did the same. I revealed myself to my human,”** Akaashi muttered, loud enough for Suna to hear. 

Suna studied Akaashi which slightly made him uncomfortable but he was more anxious about what Suna would say. 

**“Sure,”** Suna replied.

Akaashi stared at him, almost gaping at him. He didn’t it would be that easy to get Suna to share his experience. 

**“I’ll tell you my story, it’s long so take a seat,”** Suna said, gesturing Akaashi to the chair. 

Akaashi nodded and took the seat, sitting in anticipation. He hoped to gain some clarity from listening to Suna’s story. 

**“It all started when my assigned human, Osamu, was drunk. Completely wasted. He was stressed out so he started to drink his problems away,”** Suna started.

**“But then he started saying weird things. At first, it was all gibberish but then he started spilling out all his troubles even though no one was there. I was invisible, of course. He caught me by surprise when he started yelling about guardian angels and that he knew I was there. He demanded me to appear before him and thrashed around like a toddler. I was worried if he knew about my existence and I figured that I had to erase his memories.”**

**“As you know, to remove memories, I need to undo my invisibility. So I did that and even in his drunken state, his eyes widened as I appeared before him. Then, he started sobbing, talking about his troubles and half screaming about how he can’t believe what he’s seeing,”** He continued, looking outside the dorm window into the distance. 

Akaashi remained quiet as Suna spoke. 

**“He was so miserable then and despite him being a handful, I am quite fond of him so I decided to do the memory-erasing later. I listened to him whine and reassured him. At least with that, he stopped drinking more and eventually fell asleep.”**

**“He passed out on his couch and I just left, forgetting about removing his memories of myself. I realized when dawn hit and flew back to him before he woke. But when I looked at his tear-stained face, I didn’t want to do it. I expected him to not remember it anyway because he was so drunk.”**

**“I guess a part of me wished to communicate with him. Especially because he’s the type to keep all his problems to himself and never tell anyone about it, not even his own twin brother,”** Suna said with a sad smile. 

**“Well, he woke with a terrible headache, not remembering anything that happened, to my relief. Then he got a surge of pain in his head and started frantically looking around his house. And then he muttered a few words, asking if I was there. I didn’t respond, wishing he’d think it was a dream. He was definitely disoriented but then he said a couple of words that made me appear before him again,”** Suna said, returning his gaze to Akaashi.

Akaashi sat there, awkwardly but listening carefully. Fidgeting his fingers, he had his gaze set on the dark-haired angel before him. 

**“He thanked me. He didn’t even know if it was real or not but he thanked me and asked me to look after him. As those words left his lips, I wanted to support him because I wanted to, not because it was my duty. I wanted to be someone who he could talk to without any worries about being over-reliant because I wasn’t human. I appeared before him before I could change my mind and the thought of removing his memories disappeared.”**

**“This part was funny,”** Suna laughed.  **“He fell back on his couch in surprise and rubbed his eyes, muttering if he was dreaming or if he was seeing hallucinations. I talked to him, convincing him that I was real and that I wanted to be his pillar of support. And since then, we are close as ever and he hasn’t told a soul about me.”**

A soft smile adjourning Suna’s face as he finished. Akaashi didn’t know what to say.

**“Well? What do you think? Was it of any help to you?”** Suna asked.

**“I-I’m worried about how I’m feeling. Your story was helpful and touching, Suna-san but I don’t know what to do with my emotions. I don’t even understand them,”** Akaashi admitted.

Suna’s story reassured Akaashi that it wasn’t a terrible choice to reveal himself to Bokuto but aside from that, another thing was plaguing his mind. His growing emotions for Bokuto. Since he started talking to Bokuto, a new emotion started growing inside him. One he didn’t understand. 

Suna stared at him before saying,  **“Don’t be afraid of what you’re feeling. It’s not wrong. Eventually, you’ll understand what exactly it is.”**

Akaashi took in Suna’s words.

_ ‘Is it really okay?’ _

**“It’s natural, you’re doing fine,”** Suna added as if he read Akaashi’s mind.

He couldn’t make up his mind about it but he decided to trust Suna’s word for it.

After all, angels never lied. 

**“Thank you, Suna-san. I feel more confident in my choice now. I’m happy for you and Osamu-san,”** Akaashi said, a genuine smile plastered on his face.

**“No problem,”** Suna replied, a small smile on his face as well. 

**“I’ll leave you to read now, thank you for your time,”** Akaashi said with a bow. 

**“See you around,”** Suna replied, waving him off.

Akaashi nodded and left Suna’s dorm. He flew back to his dorm, pondering over everything Suna had said.


	7. Chapter 7

Akaashi pushed the dorm room open, revealing Suga sitting in the living room, sighing.

The light-haired angel didn’t notice Akaashi entering. 

**“What’s wrong?”**

Suga whipped to Akaashi,  **“I didn’t notice you coming in.”**

Akaashi shrugged, moving to the couch where Suga was.

He plopped next to him,  **“Daichi again?”**

**“Yeah...It’s hard to criticize him for overworking when everything he does so whole-heartedly is to protect the city and its people. On top of that, he’s always so helpful and kind; always donating to orphanages, etc.,”** Suga rambled,

Then he turned to Akaashi, making a puppy face, **“He’s such a good man!”**

**“Yes yes, good luck with him,”** Akaashi said simply.

He had heard Suga talk about his assigned human, Daichi, quite a lot. Ranting about how much Daichi overworks and then getting emotional because of his pure reasons as to why he does what he does. 

Suga was also very fond of his human hence why he often got angry when he didn’t take care of himself. 

Akaashi’s mind drifted off to Bokuto. His assigned human was imperfect like all humans but he was also very warm-hearted. Bright and bubbly; he lit up the world around him. Kind and inspiring yet very sensitive. Things weren’t the same until Bokuto was cheerful which automatically lifted others’ moods

Akaashi found that part of him very endearing and protecting him didn’t feel like a job but something he wanted to do. 

Softly sighing, Akaashi ran his fingers through his hair. An urge to see Bokuto surged through him. He got up quickly, startling Suga.

Akaashi turned to Suga,  **“I gotta go.”**

Suga stared at him and nodded. Akaashi flew off, back to Earth. It was around 4 am and Bokuto was sound asleep along with Hinata. Both passed out on the couch like before. 

Lights flickering outside, the moon illuminating Atsumu’s living room and Bokuto lying messily on the couch as his chest rises and falls with his blanket half covering him. 

Akaashi stood before him, looking at Bokuto sleep. He flicked Bokuto’s stray hair away from his face, smiling softly. 

Shadows of leaves created by moonlight fell softly on Bokuto’s face; outside the window, a serene hum as the wind blew. 

Bokuto stirred a little and his eyes fluttered open, sleepily. Disoriented, his golden eyes dropped, half-asleep as he said, **“Kaashi?”**

Akaashi appeared in front of Bokuto who was smiling sleepily.  **“Go back to sleep, Koutarou,”** Akaashi whispered. 

**“Mhm,”** Bokuto murmured, eyes closing; a smile intact. 

Akaashi’s voice soothed Bokuto back to sleep, his arms folded on top of each other, and a smile on his face. What an odd way of sleeping but Akaashi found it adorable. 

Normally, angels chose not to get involved with earthly things but Akaashi didn’t care about that. At least from what Suna had told him, it was okay to get a little involved with humans. He didn’t mind it either as the human was Bokuto. A feeling welling up inside him but he could not explain it. The only thing he knew was that this human made him feel emotions he never felt before.

Akaashi shifted Bokuto’s blankets slightly to cover him properly, he didn’t want Bokuto to catch a cold after all. He stayed close to Bokuto till daybreak and occasionally fixed Bokuto’s blankets as he was a messy sleeper. 

Soon, one by one, the other angels returned as the sky started to lighten up. Nodding to each other in acknowledgment; returning to their normal routine of just acknowledging each other and focusing on their work: to protect their humans. 

Sakusa awoke first, emerging from Atsumu’s room, grabbing a glass of water. Atsumu showed up a couple of minutes after him, coiling his arms around Sakusa’s waist. The latter pushed Atsumu’s arms away since he was always in a terrible mood in the morning without his morning coffee. Atsumu laughed quietly since the energetic pair were still fast asleep on the couch and proceeded to make Sakusa his coffee. 

Sakusa and Atsumu headed back to the room with their hot drinks, not wanting to disturb the other two. Well, that was the second reason. First being their mandatory morning cuddles. Sakusa wasn’t a fan of PDA so, at home, he doesn’t hold back despite his stoic demeanor. 

A little while later, Bokuto started to slowly wake from his deep slumber. Eyes fluttered open as he rubbed them sleepily. Akaashi just looked at him and Bokuto grinned. He shuffled out of his blankets, noticing that Hinata was still fast asleep. He stood up and whispered in Akaashi’s ear,  **“I can get used to waking up to your pretty face.”**

Akaashi’s cheeks painted a slight pink hue as he fiddled with his fingers behind him. Muttering a small ‘Good morning’ to Bokuto in reply. The two exchanged a few words quietly as Kageyama stood in a corner looking at them and waiting for Hinata to wake up. He still found it incredibly odd that angels would ever show themselves to their humans; the thought had never crossed his mind. 

Atsumu returned to the living room, **“Good morning, Bokkun.”**

Sakusa followed him out. 

**“Morning Tsum-Tsum, Omi-Omi!”**

Sakusa grunted. Hinata twitched on the couch, eventually getting up and rubbing his eyes. Seeing the group standing there, Hinata yawned,  **“Morning everyone.”**

**“Good morning!”** Bokuto and Atsumu said simultaneously.

**“Morning…,”** Sakusa muttered, still in a slightly bad mood. 

Hinata grabbed his phone and checked the time. It read 10:09. 

**“Oh crap! Practice is at 12. I still need to get back home for everything.”**

Hinata got up frantically. 

**“Let’s go from here, Omi-kun. You have a spare pair of your gear here, right?”** Atsumu asked. 

Sakusa nodded,  **“I brought it with me yesterday.”**

**“Great,”** Atsumu smiled.

Bokuto had a smile on his face but his eyes told everything. His hair drooped down, clearly upset about hearing about the practice he wasn’t required to participate in. 

Hinata grabbed his things and was soon out the door. Bokuto also grabbed his things.

**“Thanks for having us, Atsumu-san, Omi-san!”** Hinata yelled as he jogged down the stairs. 

**“I’ll be heading off too, thanks Tsum-Tsum, Omiomi. It was a load of fun!”** Bokuto said, waving goodbye.

**“We should do it again sometime!”** Atsumu yelled as the two of them headed off. 


	8. Chapter 8

Bokuto walked partway with Hinata until they split up as Hinata headed back to his own place.

After waving goodbye to the orange-head, the smile on Bokuto’s face disappeared. 

The thought of not going to practice like the rest of them hit painfully hard. 

Not being able to feel that rush of euphoria when slamming the ball down the opposite side hurt. 

He missed that feeling of high pressure and intensity. 

He hated that he messed up and was put on an indefinite holiday. 

The coach said a holiday would do him good but to Bokuto, it was the same as saying he wasn’t needed there anymore if he couldn’t spike with full potential or play well. 

Cherry blossoms fluttered in the wind as Bokuto trudged down the street, hands shoved in his pockets, backpack hanging loosely on his shoulders.

A beautiful day in spring yet Bokuto’s spirits were nowhere as high as the sun that day or as free-spirit as the cherry blossoms that fluttered and flew along with the wind.

Akaashi could see that being away from the one thing he loved the most pained him to no end. 

Akaashi floated quietly beside him, invisible, thinking Bokuto would want to think through things by himself. 

The feeling of being a failure seeped into the cracks in Bokuto’s heart, solidifying, and becoming a part of him. 

It didn’t feel like burnout or even like back then when he would just get upset when things didn’t go his way. 

It felt different. It felt like it was all on him. That he was the problem. 

Bokuto fished out his earphones, inserting them and blasting music loudly, trying to drown out the thoughts and feelings. 

He didn’t want to dwell on them any longer, it didn’t help, and neither did it make him feel good. 

Hands still inside his pockets, he walked down the street to a destination he didn’t know of. 

He just walked, not paying much attention to his surroundings and just drowning in the loud music blasting in his ears. 

Akaashi was tagging along with Bokuto but a little further away than usual. He didn’t know what to do for Bokuto and he hated that. He wanted to do something for Bokuto, it hurt that he couldn’t. 

Bokuto just walked straight, focusing his attention on the music playing and his gaze relatively on the ground. 

He walked across the crossroad as it turned green, looking straight ahead with no regard to his surroundings. 

The road was pretty empty; little cars and just a few people. 

He walked, the beat of the music resonating with his heartbeat. 

Then he heard a faint yell through the loud music, followed by honking sounds.

**“Koutarou!”**

Bokuto turned back but before he could look at the source of the voice, everything turned black.

Akaashi screamed Bokuto’s name again, rushing to him immediately. 

The moment he yelled his name, he felt a surge of pain on his entire body. 

A sign; a sign that the human he was assigned to protect was going through an event that he couldn’t change. 

A part of his written destiny that even he, his guardian angel, could not change. 

Akaashi held Bokuto in his arms, tears spilling; warm blood seeping out of Bokuto who laid there unconscious. 

Because at that moment, even Akaashi didn’t know what would happen. 

The bystanders frantically called an ambulance and Bokuto was ripped away from Akaashi, who then followed the ambulance. 

Heart tearing apart and tears spilling out uncontrollably. 

At that moment, Akaashi found out truly how much Bokuto meant to him. 

He was terrified he would lose him and prayed to the Lord that he wouldn’t take Bokuto away. 

Desperation in his voice, he whispered,  **“Please don’t take him away from me, please!”**

Bokuto was rushed to the ER and an emergency surgery took place immediately. There was no time to lose, Bokuto was losing a lot of blood. 

Akaashi was there in the ER, praying profusely for Bokuto to be alright. He never felt more desperate and broken in his life. 

Bokuto’s smiling face, calling his name, popped into his head as it quickly disappeared. 

Leaving Akaashi with a forlorn feeling, his stomach dropping.

Heightened fear he had never felt before. 

A splash of helplessness and anger at himself for being unable to stop this from happening. 

Even though,  _ he  _ was Bokuto’s guardian angel.  _ He  _ was supposed to protect him from danger. 

Fists clenched, a pained expression, Akaashi stood there; helpless and alone. He couldn’t bear to go anywhere or do anything besides begging the Lord not to take Bokuto away. 

After what felt like days, the doctors shuffled outside and Bokuto was moved to a hospital room. 

His parents were called and they were so upset, afraid of losing their child. Akaashi felt the same, that deep pain and the fear of losing Bokuto. 

He wasn't sure what was the result but since Bokuto was moved to a hospital, it meant that his life wasn't in immediate danger, at least. Well, he hoped. A short wave of relief hit him. But everything was not okay. Terrified of what could be the consequences, Akaashi couldn't bring himself to listen to what the doctors had to say. 

He floated, his heart heavy, to Bokuto. He was laying there, all bandaged up. Hooked up to machines and ghostly pale. Akaashi's expression scrunched in pain. He had failed to protect Bokuto and realized too late just how precious he was to him. 

Akaashi reached to touch Bokuto's bruised face but flinched back immediately. He couldn't bear looking at him. He was so deathly quiet which was terrifying to Akaashi. Bokuto who was loud and Bokuto who slept with a huge smile on his face… was lying with no expression and so weak. So pale, so fragile. Akaashi fought back the tears welling up in his eyes. 

He couldn't bear to look at Bokuto anymore. Turning away, he flew back to Heaven. He shut himself in his room and cried his heart out. 

Suga was there when Akaashi stormed into their dorm and slammed his door. 

Worried, Suga knocked on Akaashi’s door.  **“Akaashi? Is everything alright?”**

No response. Suga tried the door but it was locked.  **“Akaashi? Talk to me,”** Suga said.

**“Please...just leave me alone!”** A strained and low voice was heard but it was filled with pain and desperation along with quiet sniffles.

**“No, Akaashi, I can’t,”** Suga replied. 

**“I’m worried about you so please tell me what's wrong,”** Suga’s voice softened, laced with worry.

Akaashi desperately needed someone, someone to keep his thoughts away. 

He felt as if he would get swallowed by the guilt and pain. 

With little energy and only desperation, Akaashi unlocked the door and then retreated to his corner. 

Head in his knees, his wings covering him protectively. 

Suga took a deep breath and pushed the door open. 


	9. Chapter 9

There he was, Akaashi in the corner of his room, looking so pitiful. 

Suga ran up to him and got him to raise his face. 

His eyes were puffy and red; tear tracks all over his face but most of all, his eyes, his beautiful gun metallic eyes were dull. 

Not like before when they shined. 

**“What happened?”** Suga asked, softly. 

Akaashi’s face scrunched in pain, tears welling up in his eyes again.

**“K-Koutarou...g-got into an a-accident,”** Akaashi sobbed.

**“What?! Is he okay? Was it unpreventable?”** Suga asked, shocked. 

Akaashi nodded. Not knowing to which question did Akaashi nod to, Suga asked,  **“Is he alright?”**

Akaashi managed a little,  **“I-I don’t k-know…O-only that he’s a-alive.”**

**“Thank Lord. Why didn’t you figure out the details?”** Suga asked, sighing in relief that at least Bokuto was alive.

Yet Akaashi was in such a terrible state.

**“I-It’s all m-my f-fault. My d-duty is to p-protect h-him and I f-failed to…,”** Akaashi stuttered out, in between his sniffles. 

**“It was unpreventable, right?”** Suga asked, fairly certain.

Akaashi nodded.  **“Then, it’s not your fault. You can’t change the destiny the Lord has written for him.”**

Akaashi grabbed Suga’s arm, desperation on his face,  **“B-but I-I was t-there, I c-could have s-saved him in t-time!”**

Suga brought Akaashi’s head on his shoulder,  **“Shh...It’s not your fault, okay? Just go back and check how he is, okay?”**

Akaashi grabbed onto his arms and sobbed into Suga’s arm as he comforted him, whispering words of encouragement the entire time. 

Eventually, Akaashi calmed down a little and his head cleared up a little.

The momentary loss of control due to shock made him forget his duty. 

He still needed to protect Bokuto because, at the moment, Bokuto was vulnerable to misfortunes that he could protect him against.

**“I-I have to go to Koutarou…,”** Akaashi muttered.

Suga said, **“Go on, find out how he is properly. I pray he is alright.”**

Akaashi nodded and flew to his door but before leaving, he said,  **“Thanks for everything, Suga. I’ll get back to you later.”**

Suga waved him to go and Akaashi flew back to Bokuto’s hospital room. 

Bokuto was awake to his surprise. 

Sitting up and looking out the window at the moon, moonlight lighting the dim room. 

Akaashi made himself visible and whispered,  **“Koutarou…”**

Bokuto faced him, surprised at the sudden voice, and said,  **“Wow, you’re really pretty. Do I know you?”**

Akaashi’s heart dropped. The blank look on Bokuto’s face cleared any suspicions of it being a joke. 

A nauseating feeling crawled up his throat and he couldn’t utter a single word

Words wouldn’t come out. 

He felt as if he would swallow glass shards if he swallowed.

The growing pain in his heart seemed to last an eternity.

He felt numbness along with pain.

An indescribable feeling.

Even he didn’t know what he felt.

Shock, regret, anger, frustration, hopelessness, or was it guilt?

It took him everything to keep himself from breaking down in front of Bokuto.

Bokuto, who seemed to not recognize him. 

**“Erm...well, Nagi-san, the doctor said I got into a car accident. And I can’t seem to remember anything,”** Bokuto said with a sad smile.

**“Can you tell me who you are? And who am I? I only know my name and I just got reintroduced to my family but I don’t remember them.”**

The sad smile never leaving Bokuto’s face felt like stab wounds to Akaashi. 

Glass shards cut his heart; insurmountable pain that never ceased to stop growing within him.

The pain, unbearable; the guilt, unbearable. 

Again, Akaashi fled. 

He couldn’t bear to be near Bokuto when he was...he was...like that…

~

Storming back into his room, this time locking it tightly and shoving himself under his covers. 

Bundled in covers and hugging himself in the fetal position as his thoughts raced in his mind. 

Inexplicable pain, guilt, grief, anger, hopelessness, and his heart-wrenching in pain as if it was being pierced a million times, and broken into a million pieces. 

The accident led to him realizing that Bokuto was more than just a human he was assigned to protect, only to be left with the fact that he didn’t remember him anymore? 

Suga tried coaxing him to open his door once again but to no avail. 

He stood at his door for a while, trying to get him to even talk but he wouldn’t. 

He stayed in his cocoon long enough that the archangel had to assign Bokuto a temporary guardian angel. 

Akaashi pulled off his covers; his exhausted eyes fluttered to the ceiling. 

Dark circles under his eyes and chapped lips. 

He didn't know how many days had passed. 

He had no idea how Bokuto was either but he didn't feel anything that indicated that Bokuto was in grave danger so that was a relief. 

Yet, he felt like crying again. 

No tears came out though, they all dried up. 

Just the leftover feeling and a distant feeling of numbness clouding his mind and body. 

Akaashi realized too late just how much Bokuto meant to him. 

He couldn't bear to be with Bokuto when he didn't even remember him.

Akaashi never thought he was capable of such emotions but he was and he wished he wasn’t. 

It would have saved him from heartache. 

Staring at the ceiling, mindlessly, his mind drifted off to if he never was Bokuto's guardian angel or if he never felt this attached to him, would it all have been different? 

Would he not be as heartbroken as he was now? 

But, a somber and sad feeling filled his heart. 

Because not feeling the joy of seeing Bokuto from childhood to adulthood and the short time they spent together was way worse than the situation at the present. 

Or was it though? 

His heart longed to see Bokuto. 

But it hurt him to see Bokuto. 

But he wanted to see him. 

He wanted to know if he was eating well or if he was in pain. 

Akaashi wondered if Bokuto was suffering without his memories and if his family and friends were there to support him. 

His mind was plagued with thoughts about Bokuto. Worried about his well-being and all. 

It tipped the scales; he was more worried about Bokuto than feeling guilty. 

Thinking about Bokuto made him realize that with the way he was, he wasn't protecting him as he should be. 

Cursing under his breath, he flung his covers off him and hastily stood up. 

_ 'Just what am I doing? Neglecting my duty like this. I can't protect Koutarou  _ _ like this. I'm an absolute fool.' _

Taking a leap of faith and trying to keep his guilt at bay, he unlocked his room.

He was greeted with Suga, fast asleep against the wall in front of his room. 

Suga snapped awake from the door opening. 

**"Akaashi!"**

**"I'm sorry, Suga. I have to go."**

Suga nodded slowly,  **"Go do what you're meant to do. We can talk later."**

Akaashi nodded and took off, feeling that he really was lucky to have someone like Suga beside him. 

One who didn’t question him and let him do his thing. One who stayed by his side despite anything. 


	10. Chapter 10

Akaashi flew through the hospital rooms, looking for one with Bokuto's nameplate. 

Unaware of the time that had passed, he was unable to find Bokuto's room. 

Flying to Bokuto's apartment, only to find it empty. 

There was one last place he could think of. 

Bokuto's childhood home where his parents were. 

He flew to Bokuto's room in his childhood house, finding him sitting at his old desk looking through a couple of picture albums. 

Akaashi felt tears welling up in his eyes. But then he noticed, Bokuto wasn't alone. 

Another angel was there. An angel with shoulder-length reddish-brown hair with matching colored, lazy-looking eyes, completed with a critter smile. 

_ 'Just how long did I stay cooped up in my room? I've rarely heard of replacement or temporary angels for a human.' _

_ 'Wait, have I been replaced?'  _

_ 'No way… But I did not fulfill my duty…'  _

The angel nodded at Akaashi which snapped him back to reality. 

She said softly,  **"My job here is done. Take care of Bokuto Koutarou. I was only here temporarily protecting him."**

The angel flew away and left Bokuto with Akaashi. 

Akaashi sighed in relief, at least he still was the angel who had to protect Bokuto. He stood before Bokuto who was intently looking at the pictures. 

He revealed himself and Bokuto yelled,  **"Woah!"**

**"Y-you're the one I saw at the hospital a month ago, right?"** Bokuto asked. 

**"I asked about you and no one seemed to know and then I found out about the legend of guardian angels. Judging from your pure white wings and attire, you must be my guardian angel, right?"** Bokuto continued. 

It was pretty smart of Bokuto to put two and two together but Akaashi didn’t have the willpower to praise his intellect that had increased after his accident. 

Akaashi was just trying not to break down in front of Bokuto. 

His voice, his face, his entire being. Akaashi missed them all so much. 

He checked the calendar in Bokuto’s room to see how much time has passed.

A stab of guilt seeping into him for not protecting Bokuto for a  _ month _ . 

Bokuto tilted his head,  **“You’re my guardian angel, right?”**

Bokuto repeating his question snapped Akaashi back to reality.

**“Y-yeah. Have you remembered anything?”** Akaashi asked.

Bokuto looked straight ahead at his window, a sad smile on his face as he shook his head. 

**"I… don't remember anything. Not one single thing even after a month…,"** Bokuto said. 

_ 'Will he ever remember?'  _

A sinking feeling in Akaashi's heart. 

Bokuto continued,  **"But the doctor said there is a chance I might remember some things if the memory of an event is strong enough. But so far, nothing."**

**"H-have you been in your apartment? That place might jog your memory?"** Akaashi said. 

**"I have an apartment?"** Bokuto asked, turning to look at Akaashi. 

Akaashi slowly nodded. 

**"I should discuss moving back there with mom and dad then. They've been worried so I haven't gone out much. I'm physically fine now, just that I haven't been able to remember anything,"** Bokuto said. 

Akaashi just stared at him. He looked more tired than usual and a bit pale. 

His energetic self was nowhere to be found. And that bright smile that lit up had been replaced by sad smiles. Akaashi's heart broke seeing Bokuto like that. 

Akaashi stayed by Bokuto’s side as he asked him questions about himself. Akaashi spoke of Bokuto to him with the softest expression and tenderness in his voice. 

Bokuto was just enamored by the etherealness of Akaashi and how fondly he spoke of ‘him’. 

The person he was but the person he doesn’t know and may never know. 

A pang in the heart as he dreaded not remembering what made Akaashi speak of him with such care and love in his voice. 

Akaashi reminisced about the little things about Bokuto, all the while his heart was breaking. 

The possibility that Bokuto might never remember anything was likely. 

Akaashi stayed by Bokuto’s side all the time even during the night when Bokuto slept. 

After all, he was afraid of anything happening to Bokuto again… 

Eventually, Bokuto managed to return to his apartment. 

**"Hey hey hey! This place is really nice,"** Bokuto said, walking into his apartment. 

Akaashi chuckled as he had the exact same reaction when he first saw the apartment. 

A slight bud of hope grew in Akaashi's heart. 

Maybe...just maybe, Bokuto may slowly regain his memories. 

Bokuto quickly settled down in his apartment and fell into a routine of going to his weekly checkup sessions at the hospital and his mother visiting him frequently with homemade food to check on him. 

Akaashi told Bokuto about various things about himself that he had forgotten. 

About his life, his ambition, and his passion for volleyball.

Bokuto’s eyes sparkled as Akaashi told him about his past endeavors with volleyball. 

Feeling his stare, Akaashi asked,  **“Why don’t you try asking your friends to play with you? It might bring back some memories.”**

**“I don’t know how to talk to them...I don’t remember anything but they all visited me at the hospital. And the orange head - Hinata - was it? He even cried for me but I couldn’t remember a single thing. I feel so bad…,”** Bokuto said, downcast.

**“It’s not your fault, Koutarou. I’m sure no one holds it against you. It’s out of your control. Maybe playing the sport you loved with them would help jog your buried memories,”** Akaashi said, his own voice ringing in his head as he wished what he said would come true. 

**“If you say so…,”** Bokuto replied. 

Fishing out his phone, he texted the group chat with the MSBY guys. 

Akaashi watched him as he tapped on his phone screen. 

After a couple of minutes, Bokuto lifted his head and grinned,  **“We’ll meet at the public court on Saturday! Everyone is so nice and supportive!”**

Bokuto’s grin fell into a soft smile,  **“I have amazing friends…”**

**“I can’t be mopey forever for them, right?”**

_ ‘And for you.’ _

**“I’ll do my best to remember!”** Bokuto cheered. 

A soft smile spread across Akaashi’s delicate features. 

The Bokuto he knew wasn’t gone. He was still there. 

**“Yes, I’ll be here every step of the way…,”** Akaashi replied, softness in his voice that sent chills down Bokuto’s spine which turned into warmth in his heart. 

Bokuto grinned at him; this time a genuine one. 

Like the ones, he used to give Akaashi on the daily. 

Akaashi smiled back, thinking to the Lord about how desperately he wanted Bokuto to remember everything. 

Not for himself but for Bokuto because he knew how miserable Bokuto was with missing all of his memories. 

Granted, Bokuto wasn’t doing the best before he lost his memories but at the moment, it was a different kind of pain. 


	11. Chapter 11

**“HEY HEY! BOKUTO-SAN!”** Hinata yelled from across. 

Bokuto waved back as the younger male jogged to meet him. 

**“Are you excited to play volleyball?”** Hinata asked, cheerfully because clearly, he was ecstatic. 

Bokuto put on a smile and replied,  **“Yes!”**

In reality, Bokuto was afraid that if this didn’t jog his memories, he felt nothing would. 

From what Akaashi told him, he was obsessed with volleyball and loved it with every fiber of his being. 

But looking at the Mikasa ball or videos of people playing volleyball didn’t stir anything in his heart besides a tiny feeling of dread. 

He couldn’t bring himself to watch any of his own videos either because he felt he couldn’t stomach seeing himself; past him that he had no clue about. 

Atsumu and Sakusa joined the two. 

The four angels met again, nodding to each other. 

The air was heavy between them because they all knew what happened to Bokuto from their humans’ conversations but they knew nothing to say. 

None of them spoke and just trailed behind their humans. 

The four humans just chatted as they headed to the public gymnasium. 

The smell of air salonpas, sweat, and the scent of fresh volleyball shoes mixed in the air. A typical atmosphere for a volleyball gymnasium. 

Bokuto stepped inside, awing at the high ceilings. 

A tiny feeling of excitement growing in his heart. 

His heart slowly started beating faster. 

**“It’s been a while since we came here. Lately, we’ve been stuck at the MSBY gym. It’s a nice change of scenery,”** Atsumu said, looking around.

**“I missed this place!”** Hinata replied, eyes sparkling. 

**“Let’s just go get changed,”** Sakusa scowled.

He preferred the MSBY gym since he made sure it was always in a sanitary condition or he wouldn’t show up for practice. 

If it was any random meet up, he would have never agreed but Bokuto had asked. 

  
  


Despite his cold demeanor, he, too, wanted his teammate to regain his memories. 

The group changed into appropriate clothes and volleyball shoes and gathered at an empty court.

Multiple courts were available so Atsumu chose the one closest to the locker room. 

Setting down their bags and water bottles, they did their usual warm-up.

Bokuto didn’t remember it, of course, so he just copied what the rest were doing. 

As he warmed up, a wave of anxiety hit him. He didn’t remember anything about volleyball; not its rules or how to spike a ball. He didn’t even remember his position until Hinata told him he played as a spiker. 

He wondered if this was a good idea because it would crush him if the one thing he ‘loved’ couldn’t remind him of anything then what would? 

The thought reverberating in his head. 

Akaashi just stood on the sidelines, observing the scene before him; desperately wishing that, of all things, this should remind Bokuto of himself. Remind him of his past self. 

Bokuto stood on one side of the court with Hinata and Sakusa and Atsumu on the other side. Hinata served the ball and it flew to the other side of the net with ease as Sakusa dug it cleanly to Atsumu. 

**“Nice receive!”** Atsumu said as he raised his arms to set the incoming ball. 

Setting it perfectly to Sakusa who smashed it down. Bokuto was freaking out as it all happened quickly and then he blanked out. His body moved faster than he thought he could and dug the ball cleanly to Hinata who set the ball up for Bokuto.

**“Bokuto-san!”**

Bokuto was already high up in the air as the ball came in contact with his hand and it flew down on the other side of the court with great velocity and a huge impact sound. 

**“Bokuto-san! That line shot was amazing!”** Hinata said, eyes sparkling. 

Bokuto snapped back to reality and stared at his palm; red and throbbing. 

A sensation he felt he always knew. A feeling his body remembered even if his mind did not. 

His heart throbbed, blood coursed through his entire body rapidly; adrenaline at its peak. 

His bright golden eyes still fixated on his palm as the rest of the world disappeared. 

A surge of pain filled his head, he winced and clenched his head in pain. 

Feeling lightheaded, soon his vision faded into oblivion.

Akaashi looked at Bokuto as he froze, worried; until Bokuto fainted. 

Alarmed, he rushed to Bokuto. Hinata, Atsumu, and Sakusa rushed to him, quickly calling an ambulance. 

Akaashi held Bokuto’s hand as if his life depended on it, his heart constricting and his breathing rapid. 

Expression scrunched up in desperation, clenching Bokuto’s hand as if he let go Bokuto would disappear into thin air.

_ ‘No...no…NO!’ _

_ ‘Please be okay, Koutarou!’ _

_ ‘Please my Lord, let him be okay, please!’ _

Bokuto was rushed to the hospital immediately. 

Akaashi’s heartbeat thumping against his chest in fear, squeezing Bokuto’s hand tightly. 

Muttering prayers for him nonstop. 

Mind racing about thoughts of if Bokuto wasn’t okay. 

Then what? Protecting Bokuto was his entire life’s purpose.

Not only that, he was the human he had grown to love. 

A love so deep, deeper than any feeling he had experienced before. 

But that day when he almost lost Bokuto, he painfully realized his true feelings towards his human. 

The feeling of impending doom when Bokuto was taken away from him and into the ER. 

Doctors rushed inside while Sakusa, Atsumu, and Hinata stayed outside. 

The fear of going inside to see Bokuto's condition bubbled inside Akaashi. 

After what seemed likely eternity, Akaashi took a deep breath and flew inside. 

Inside, Bokuto was surrounded by doctors and hooked up to machines and IV fluids. 

His heart sank until his eyes flicked to the heart rate monitor. 

Bokuto's heart was beating normally. 

One by one, the doctors moved away from Bokuto and muttered between themselves, discussing the results. 

Most of them left, and two stayed to check on Bokuto and one, Nagi, went outside to explain things to the group outside. Akaashi went there to listen too. 

A little less tense than before since most of the doctors retreated. 

**“Is he okay?!”** Everyone asked. 

Bokuto’s parents and the MSBY boys crowded Nagi. 

**“He is currently fine,”** He said to which everyone sighed in relief.

**“But further details I’d like to speak to Bokuto-san’s relatives privately,”** Nagi continued. 

The boys nodded and backed off while Nagi spoke to Bokuto’s parents. 

Bokuto’s parents looked at each other with worried looks before turning to the doctor. 

Akaashi stood at their side, heart thumping in his chest. 

He was so afraid; so very afraid of what Nagi would say. 


	12. Chapter 12

**"Bokuto-san's condition is stable. He'll wake naturally soon enough,"** Nagi informed. 

Bokuto's parents and Akaashi sighed in relief. 

**"Was he exposed to extreme stress or something that triggered his memories?"** Nagi asked. 

Aware of Bokuto's accident and recovery, Nagi inquired so he would be able to give Bokuto's parents a sound judgment of what he thought happened to Bokuto. 

Akaashi knew that something happened because Bokuto was clutching his head before he passed out. 

His fists were clenched as he prayed for Bokuto's well-being. 

Bokuto's parents looked at each other and then called the MSBY boys over. 

**"You boys brought Kou-chan here, right? What happened?"** Bokuto's mother asked. 

**"Bokkun invited us to play volleyball at the gym. We started and when he made his first spike, he froze and then passed out so we called the ambulance immediately. We're so sorry,"** Atsumu explained, biting his lower lip. 

The other two downcast, worried about Bokuto. 

**"Bokuto-san is a professional volleyball player, correct?"** Nagi questioned. 

Everyone nodded, including Akaashi, staring at Nagi in anticipation; fearful of what he might say.

Worry and guilt in their expressions. 

Akaashi felt as if his heart would burst if Nagi didn't say anything in the next second. 

**"I speculate that playing volleyball triggered his memories that were buried. He's physically alright. I expect him to slowly regain some memories, hopefully. We'll be keeping him here till he wakes and for a day after he wakes to run some tests,"** Nagi continued. 

A weight was lifted from Akaashi's shoulders. 

Nagi finished talking to the lot and Akaashi flew to Bokuto's side. 

Standing before him, Akaashi moved Bokuto’s hair from his face as he caressed his face. 

**“I’m so glad you’re going to be okay, Koutarou…,”** Akaashi whispered. 

_ ‘I wouldn’t know what to do if you weren’t…’ _

**“And the doctor said you might regain some of your memories. Isn’t that great?”** Akaashi continued as Bokuto lay on the hospital bed, breathing steadily.

The steadiness of his breath comforted Akaashi as he trailed his fingers to Bokuto’s hair, smoothing it out gently. 

_ ‘So wake up soon…’ _

**“Everyone is worried about you...especially me…,”** Akaashi brought Bokuto’s hand to his forehead and then to his lips. 

A tear slid down Akaashi’s face and onto Bokuto’s face; he squeezed Bokuto’s hand. 

With strain in his voice, as if he would burst into tears, he whispered,  **“Please wake up soon…”**

Akaashi longed to see that bright Bokuto smile yelling out his name like before. 

But at that time, he just wished to see Bokuto awake and talking; even without his memories, at least he was alive and breathing. 

Akaashi didn’t want anything but that, at the time. 

Bokuto’s parents came inside and Akaashi shifted to the window side and watched as his mother touched his face and kissed his forehead, trying to keep herself from crying. 

His father took a seat next to his son’s bed with a pensive expression. 

He took Bokuto’s hand and then Bokuto’s mother’s hand, squeezing them firmly. 

Akaashi shifted to touch Bokuto’s hair,  **“Wake up soon... Your mother and father are worried about you…”**

Bokuto’s parents left the room and left the MSBY boys to look after Bokuto while they pick up a few things to stay in the hospital till Bokuto wakes up. 

During the entire duration of Bokuto’s sleep, Akaashi stayed by his side. 

Not leaving him, not even for a second. 

Akaashi wanted to be there when Bokuto woke up. 

He wanted to hear Bokuto’s voice, he wanted to see Bokuto awake. 

Deep down wishing he regained some of his memories as well. 

~

Akaashi gazed outside the open window; a soft breeze filling the room. 

The moon was high up in the sky; full and bright. 

Sighing, he stuck his head out the window and took in the clean and cold evening air. 

It slightly cleared his head as his mind wandered to Bokuto and another plea for his safe awakening racing through his mind. 

And the lingering thought of the fact that he didn’t know what he was doing anymore. 

Being a guardian angel who was given the duty to protect Bokuto Koutarou only meant that he had to protect him from whatever misfortune that befalls him with some exceptions, of course. 

But when he started becoming more involved with his assigned human, his values changed and his perspective shifted. 

Bokuto Koutarou was more than just a ‘human’ he was assigned to protect. 

Hence, the loss of direction because he had started to long to protect him from anything and everything. 

He couldn’t bear to lose him. 

Since when did protecting Bokuto become more than his duty? 

Since when did Bokuto become so important to him? 

He didn’t know but he couldn’t control the growing emotions; the tightening sensation in his chest as he watched Bokuto lay asleep on his bed. 

Still leaning against the window, Akaashi took another deep breath. 

Closing his eyes, clearing his mind, and envisioning the pathway of the air.

**“Akaashi...Water…”**

Akaashi’s eyes shot open as he flung his head to where Bokuto was lying. 

**“Akaasheeee…,”** Bokuto groaned, half awake and half asleep.

Akaashi dashed to Bokuto,  **“Koutarou! Are you okay?!”**

**“W-what are you talking about? Where am I?”** Bokuto muttered.

Tears started welling up in Akaashi’s eyes. 

Bokuto’s eyes widened, “ **W-w-Don’t cry, Akaashee!”**

**“T-thank Lord, you’re awake…,”** Akaashi said in between sobs. 

Bokuto reached his hand out to touch Akaashi’s face and wiped away his tears.

**“Please stop crying...You’re ruining your pretty face.”**

**“B-but you’re pretty when you are crying too! Ahhh! That’s not my point!”** Bokuto blabbered.

A small laugh escaped Akaashi’s lips as his tears stopped. 

Bokuto grinned happily; one so wide that seemed to pass on positive vibes to others. 

_ ‘Wait…’ _

_ ‘Koutarou, that reaction?’ _

_ ‘He called me by my name?’ _

_ ‘And he hadn’t acted like the way he did since he got into the accident…’ _

Hope grew in his heart, he tried to suppress it since he didn’t want to be disappointed.

**“Koutarou…, w-what’s my name?”**

Bokuto tilted his head against his pillow,  **“Akaashi, why?”**

**“T-then, h-how did we first meet face-to-face?”** Akaashi continued, his heart beating out of his chest.

**“Um...Didn’t I ask you to show yourself? I was in a really bad place at the time that I called out to you when all I knew about angels were legends and myths. But it turned out to be true and I couldn’t be happier,”** Bokuto recalled, a smile emerging as he thought about how they met for the first time and the times they’ve spent together. 

_ ‘Does that mean?...’ _

**“D-do you remember everything?”** Akaashi asked, his breath hitching. 

**“Remember what?”** Bokuto looked at him, confused.

**“T-the accident and your memories?”** Akaashi said.

Bokuto squinted his eyes and tried to think about what Akaashi said. 

Whilst trying to remember, he muttered,  **“I remember hearing you call my name and then I saw a truck? coming right at me and then darkness.”**

_ ‘Did he forget everything that happened during his amnesia period after regaining his memories?’ _

_ ‘This isn’t the most important thing right now…’ _

**“Are you feeling okay?”** Akaashi said, shuffling around Bokuto, making sure he wasn’t hurting anywhere.

**“I’m fine, Akaashi!”** Bokuto yelled. 

**“Okay, good,”** Akaashi sighed. 

**“Call the nurse though,”** He added, pointing at the button. 

Bokuto nodded and pressed the button.


	13. Chapter 13

The nurse came soon after and saw Bokuto awake and called the doctors immediately. 

They did a couple of tests to see if he was alright physically. 

Akaashi stood on the sidelines, fretting over every test result. 

Bokuto’s mother fussed over him, tears in her eyes while his father sighed in relief on the side. 

The relief and happiness that his memories returned and he looked pretty healthy. 

Bokuto comforted his mother warmly and smiled brightly at Akaashi every chance he got.

His parents briefed him about what happened but Bokuto revealed that he didn’t remember anything from after the accident. 

The doctor concluded that the shock of regaining all of his memories wiped away the new ones but he was stable and healthy. 

He was to be discharged after 2 days since they wanted to monitor him for a little longer. 

Bokuto’s parents stayed for the duration and the MSBY boys came visiting. 

His former Fukurodani members called and some even visited like before although he didn’t remember any of them last time. 

Everyone was super glad and hoped for the best. 

His accident came as a shock to everyone and then his amnesia was a kick in the stomach. 

Especially to Akaashi. 

The weight off his shoulders and he felt lighter knowing Bokuto was alright. 

~

The 2 days passed quickly and Akaashi stayed by Bokuto's side the entire time. 

Suga even came looking for Akaashi since he was worried about where he was for the past few days. 

His dorm room was starting to get dusty with no use. 

**"Wah! It's nice to be back in my own apartment!"** Bokuto said, raising his arms. 

Akaashi fussed,  **"Are you sure you're okay? You must tell me if you ever feel off."**

Bokuto turned to him,  **"I'm okay, Kaashi! Don't worry!"**

**"Just… take it easy…,"** Akaashi muttered. 

**"Bring back that pretty smile of yours! You're stressing me out with that frown,"** Bokuto pouted, his hair falling along with his mood. 

Akaashi sighed,  **“I can’t help it. You worry me a lot, Koutarou.”**

Bokuto continued pouting and then his face lit up along with his hair, of course. 

He walked up to Akaashi and moved in really close to his face.

Grabbing Akaashi’s face and tried to use his hands to form a smile on his face but he doesn’t do it from the initial shock so he just held Akaashi’s face. 

Bokuto stared into his face and immediately blushing madly. 

Akaashi was even prettier up close. 

Akaashi stared at Bokuto, his face turning red. 

Bokuto’s redness reached the tips of his ears but he still didn’t let go and the two stared at each other’s bright red faces. 

Yet none of them would move or break eye contact. 

The two of them could hear the sound of their heartbeats in their ears and each other’s faces in front of them. 

Bokuto’s hands shivered and that was when Akaashi looked away and Bokuto let go of his face. 

They both kinda turned away and stood in silence. 

After a good few minutes of awkward silence, Akaashi muttered, **“W-why’d you do that?”**

Bokuto turned to him but he was looking away,  **“J-just wanted to make you smile but I got startled.”**

**“...By your beauty...up close…,”** Bokuto added in a hushed tone. 

But Akaashi heard it. 

As Bokuto said that, the red hue returned to Akaashi’s face and he refused to look at Bokuto. 

His heart beating out of his chest because of Bokuto’s actions and his comment after. 

An awkward silence filled the room once again as the two of them averted their gazes from one another; both their pulse rates skyrocketing. 

They stayed like that for a good bit till the sound of Bokuto’s phone ringing broke the silence. 

Bokuto picked up his phone,  **“Hello?”**

The speaker spoke and then Bokuto asked,  **“Right now?”**

**“Sure!”**

He ended the call and smiled brightly. 

**“Hinata and the others are coming soon!”** Bokuto said to Akaashi.

Akaashi nodded. 

Bokuto continued,  **“I should clean up the apartment…”**

As Bokuto said that, they both proceeded to look at the extremely messy apartment. 

Keyword: Extremely.

Akaashi sighed and started to pick up some things. 

Bokuto sheepishly smiled and joined him. 

The two cleaned up as much as they could until the doorbell rang. 

**"Coming!"** Bokuto yelled, heading to the door. 

Bokuto opened the door as the MSBY boys stood there, smiling and with pizzas and fast food in their hands. 

The group filed into Bokuto’s apartment, setting down the food they brought. 

**“How are you feeling, Bokkun?”** Atsumu asked.

**“I’m alright, Tsum-Tsum! Thanks for asking!”** Bokuto responded, cheerfully. 

Sakusa nodded and said in a serious tone,  **“You definitely cannot miss getting your flu shots, alright?”**

Then he went off muttering something about weaker immunity and being careful. 

Bokuto gulped and nodded slowly. 

Sakusa was sometimes menacing when he was giving health advice. 

Scratch that; always menacing when he was serious. 

Hinata was just jumping around asking about Bokuto’s health and then celebrating energetically when he said he was fine. 

The ball of energy. The sunshine boy. 

Akaashi watched Kageyama face-palm watching Hinata being loud. 

The apartment that was silent and lonely for a while was replaced by noise and company. 

The sounds of laughter rang throughout the apartment. 

Bokuto acted as if nothing was ever wrong. 

But Akaashi knew if he regained his memory then that  _ feeling  _ would be back as well. 

The crushing feeling of not being to play the way you want to. The mental block would for sure return as well. 

Akaashi's mind then drifted to when Bokuto made that perfect spike before he fainted and was taken to the hospital. 

He pondered over the possibility of Bokuto getting out of his slump. 

He shook his head immediately after. 

If only it were that simple or was it? 

Humans were complex creatures. 

Emotionally and physically. 

That was the beauty of the Lord’s creations. 

Akaashi’s mind dazed off the various things while the humans wreaked havoc in Bokuto’s apartment. 

More like Atsumu trying to control Bokuto and Hinata while Sakusa just scowled on the side and was uncooperative. 

To think, the Miya Atsumu who was more on the childish side had to be the mature one in their group. 

With a group that included Bokuto, Hinata, and Sakusa, it was inevitable. 

Sakusa wasn’t childish but he was uncooperative half of the time.

Someone had to keep them in line and most of all, alive. 

Akaashi’s mind eventually returned to Earth. 

He observed the group as did the other guardian angels, in peaceful coexistence. 

Only the angels were in peaceful coexistence though, the humans were messing around and making lots of noise. 

Akaashi smiled to himself, glad to see Bokuto rowdy like before. 

So much more like himself. 

During his time with amnesia, he was a lot tamer. 

Their days were way more quieter. 

But this was the normal Akaashi was used to. 

Bokuto’s eyes met with Akaashi’s and he cracked him a smile. 

That sent a rush of redness to Akaashi’s cheeks and he avoided eye contact with Bokuto afterward. 

His heart filled up with happiness as the bright ball of energy that stole his heart smiled brightly, illuminating his bleak life. 

He couldn’t thank the Lord enough for this outcome. 


	14. Chapter 14

The days moved along rapidly. 

Bokuto quickly realized that he somehow miraculously was able to get over his slump. 

Going back to training was the best thing after getting over his slump. 

Bokuto was even brighter and louder than before. 

He really did come back full force. 

Akaashi smiled as he watched Bokuto train. 

His face was filled with excitement and exhilaration. 

He stood on the court, hands on his knees, panting heavily. 

But the expression of pure joy never left his face, no matter how exhausted he looked with sweat dripping and overheating. 

Akaashi clapped for him, every time he made a successful spike. 

Bokuto would whip his head to where Akaashi stood, his golden eyes meeting Akaashi's gun-metallic ones. 

Then he would crack a huge grin and throw a huge peace sign. 

Thankfully, Akaashi stood at the bleachers so it looked like he was throwing peace signs to the managers and coaches, otherwise, he'd look like he was doing that to thin air. 

Peace returned to their lives. 

The normal routine was in place including the occasional awkward moments between Bokuto and Akaashi. 

However, the two never talked about their feelings to one another. 

Blissful peace had been attained for the remainder of their summer days. 

One summer night, Akaashi was fussing over Bokuto to sleep. 

It was 3 am and he was still watching volleyball games. 

Time wasn’t a concept nor was sleep when Bokuto was invested in something. 

Akaashi somehow managed to make him close his laptop and get to bed. 

He was about to leave Bokuto's bedroom to close the lights in the living room and check if everything was alright. 

Akaashi felt a tug on his garment and he looked back at Bokuto.

The human was snuggled in between his pillows and duvet looking comfortable and cozy. 

**"Can you stay till I fall asleep?"** Bokuto asked softly. 

Akaashi wondered how could this 24-year-old man look so precious. 

The type of serotonin you get from looking at a puppy. 

He was too adorable for a full-grown man or maybe that was just Akaashi's perception of Bokuto. 

Akaashi nodded and softly plopped onto Bokuto’s bed. 

Bokuto grinned, still tugging on Akaashi’s garment as he closed his eyes with a smile. 

Within minutes, Bokuto snoring away. It was pretty late, after all. 

Akaashi smiled, shifting slightly to get up. 

But then Bokuto murmured something. 

Akaashi turned to look at home, worried if he had woken him up. 

He didn’t wake up, just sleep talking. 

Akaashi laughed lightly as Bokuto murmured some more. 

**“Kaashi...don’t gooooooo…”**

Then some more incoherent murmurs. 

Then smiling in his sleep, Bokuto murmured,  **“...pretty...you’re so...pretty…”**

**“I like...you...Kaashi…”**

Akaashi flushed red, his heartbeat increasing exponentially. 

In his mind, logically, he knew that Bokuto could be saying it platonically but he couldn’t control his reaction. 

Hearing this sort of thing from the person he liked, made him feel all giddy and mushy on the inside. 

Even though logically, Bokuto could have meant it platonically, and besides, he was sleep talking. 

But Akaashi’s emotions went crazy, he stared at Bokuto’s peaceful sleeping face. 

How he loved Bokuto’s features; from his jawline to his lips to the lines on his face to his beautiful eyelashes and soft hair. 

Akaashi reached out to touch Bokuto’s hair as his fingertips lightly traced Bokuto’s jawline till his chin where he rested his fingers for a second longer; his heart thumping loudly. 

He leaned in and whispered,  **“I like you too, Koutarou.”**

**“I’m not sure if this what you humans call love but it feels like it…”**

Akaashi chuckled to himself, thinking he was odd for saying all that while Bokuto was fast asleep. 

Then he got up and covered Bokuto properly with his blankets; he was a messy sleeper. 

Standing before Bokuto, Akaashi whispered,  **“Sweet dreams, Kou.”**

After switching off all the lights and final checks of Bokuto’s apartment, Akaashi headed back to the Heavenly Realm. 

Akaashi stepped inside his shared dorm as he thought about Bokuto’s sleep talk and chuckled to himself.

**“What’s so funny?”** Suga asked with a smile from across the living room on the sofa. 

**“Nothing,”** Akaashi replied, pulling himself together. 

**“So what happened with Bokuto? That’s your human’s last name right?”** Suga asked with a sly grin.

Akaashi averted his gaze and said,  **"Nothing."**

**"I don't buy it but suit yourself,"** Suga grinned. 

Akaashi sighed and retreated to his room, writing up his report about Bokuto's day.

A task that was done by every guardian angel daily. 

Akaashi finished up his report and headed to the library. The only other place he visited besides his dorm in the Heavenly realm. 

Reading there was his usual past time during the hours when Bokuto was asleep. 

It was a hobby he indulged in quite often every time he had a chance to. 

He was fascinated by the realm of books. 

Especially since the Heavenly Realm’s library had a vast majority of books. 

From books about the mortal realm to books about the Heavenly Realm to books created by humans or angels. 

Every book that existed once upon a time was present there. 

An abundance to choose from; never-ending as new books pour in all the time. 

Akaashi picked out a new fiction novel from the 1800s that piqued his interest and made his way to his favorite reading spot. A single armchair with a side table next to the window. 

Akaashi landed softly on his cozy little corner armchair, flipping the pages of the book to the first chapter. 

Eyes flickering through the letters on the book, forming words and sentences and eventually portraying thoughts and emotions and creating a world or perhaps, worlds. 

The light fell inside Akaashi little corner through the trees, creating a comfortable ambiance. 

Some of the scattered rays of light fell on Akaashi’s lashes as his eyes focused on the book, highlighting his beautiful long lashes that moved ever so slightly as he blinked. 

His peaceful picture-perfect reading time was abruptly cut off as he felt a jolt. 

A jolt that indicated that Bokuto was in distress. 

He dropped the book and flew straight to Bokuto, worried about what happened. 

When he reached there, he sighed in relief. 

Bokuto was only having a nightmare hence why he was in distress. 

He picked up Bokuto’s blanket that was sprawled on the floor. 

Tucking him in, he lightly placed his hand on Bokuto’s forehead. 

He whispered,  **“May you dream of only wonderful things, Kou.”**

Bokuto’s creased forehead and slightly erratic breathing calmed down, a tiny smile replacing the initial frown. 

Akaashi smiled to himself and observed him for a little bit before leaving again. 


	15. Chapter 15

Akaashi returned to Bokuto's apartment at the crack of dawn. 

Novel in one hand, he made his way to Bokuto’s bedroom. 

He drew open the curtains to let light into the room. 

It was dawn so the sun was still not high in the sky but eventually, it would be and Bokuto could wake naturally. 

Akaashi made himself comfortable in the beanbag in Bokuto’s room as he read his novel in the dead silence of the early morning, accompanied by Bokuto’s soft snores. 

He looked over to Bokuto who was sleeping soundly, smiled to himself, and shifted his attention to his novel. 

A peaceful time before Bokuto awoke. 

In between the short chapters Akaashi read, he glanced over at Bokuto’s bed after every chapter ended. 

Being a messy sleeper, Bokuto was in a different position every time Akaashi looked. 

Akaashi chuckled to himself lightly. 

The way he found this fully grown man adorable yet the very same man managed to make his heart skip a beat. 

Bokuto made Akaashi feel emotions he never experienced before; a mix of giddy feelings and nervousness. 

Every glance at Bokuto’s sleeping form made Akaashi crack a smile. 

Akaashi lost track of time as he was immersed in reading long and engaging chapters until he heard Bokuto’s voice,  **“Kaashi...where are you?”**

Bokuto called out as he rubbed his eyes sleepily, bed-head sticking up everywhere. 

Akaashi closed his book and tucked it away and turned himself visible. 

He flew over to Bokuto who sleepily smiled and said, **”Good morning…”**

**”Good morning, Koutarou. I hope you slept well, ”** Akaashi replied.

**”I had an amazing dream…, ”** He replied. 

**”Oh, what was it about?”**

Still sleepy and without much thought, he blurted out,  **”I was dreaming about you and I told you I liked you and you whispered back that you felt the same...I was so happy…”**

Rubbing his eyes sleepily, Bokuto didn't comprehend what he said as he looked at Akaashi. 

Akaashi turned bright red as soon as he heard what Bokuto said.

_ ’He wasn't asleep? He thinks it was a dream?’ _

Bokuto snapped awake from Akaashi’s reaction and processed what he just said and he also flushed red.

**”I-Uhm...dream...just a dream…, ”** Bokuto tried to explain.

**”It wasn't a dream…, ”** Akaashi whispered under his breath.

**”What did you say?”**

**”It wasn't a dream..., ”** Akaashi repeated, louder this time.

Bokuto stared at Akaashi blankly as he averted his eyes with a bright red tinge on his cheeks. 

When Bokuto returned to reality and processed what Akaashi had said, he turned tomato red and yelled,  **“W-what?! That wasn’t a dream! And W-what?! S-so you l-like…w-what?! L-like me back?!”**

Bokuto’s brain couldn’t comprehend the situation very well and he fell back on his bed; Akaashi’s wings quivered slightly so he made them disappear. 

_ ‘Oh my Lord! He heard me! And why did I tell him that it wasn’t a dream?! I even repeated myself! What was I thinking?!’ _

Akaashi’s brain went haywire, darting around from one thought to another, and becoming a mush. 

**“I-uhm-“** Akaashi stuttered.

Bokuto snapped back to reality again and said, **“D-don’t say anything yet! Hear me out first!”**

Akaashi opened his mouth to say something but decided not to and just nodded, standing awkwardly as Bokuto grabbed his pillow and buried his face into it. 

With his face buried in his pillow, Bokuto started quietly,  **\**

He sped up his words at the end and buried his face deeper into his pillow.

Akaashi was lowkey worried if he could breathe. 

But then and again, he couldn’t breathe either.

He reached a shade of red that didn’t seem possible at the sound of Bokuto’s confession. 

While Bokuto stuffed his face into his pillow, Akaashi just froze. 

His heart beating out of his chest.

He feared it would literally fall out of his chest. 

Akaashi let out an incoherent noise and crouched beside Bokuto’s bed, hands covering his face. 

Bokuto peeked at him a little, looking at the angel with his hands in his face. 

Akaashi whispered, **“I,,, think I also,,,,uh-,,,, I l-like you?,,, I-I’m not sure,,, of such emotions,,,but I’ve never felt,,,it before,,,”**

Bokuto’s ears perked up as he turned to Akaashi immediately, releasing his pillow from his murderous grip. 

He held Akaashi’s face in his hands as their eyes met. 

Akaashi was bright red, all the way to his ears. 

Embarrassed and mesmerized by Akaashi’s beauty, Bokuto flustered,  **“I-uh,,,I’m not dreaming, right?”**

Akaashi averted his eyes and nodded slowly, the six inches between their faces threw Akaashi’s heart into a frenzy. 

He could hear his heart beating in his ears. 

Bokuto let go of Akaashi’s face and grabbed the pillow and squeezed it. 

**“I can’t believe it…”**

**“I-I mean someone l-like me? You’re okay w-with that?”**

Akaashi’s mind cleared for a split second. He sat beside Bokuto and put his hand on Bokuto’s.

**“It’s because it’s you, Kou. It wouldn’t be the same if it wasn’t you…,”** Akaashi said.

Bokuto’s ears perked up and he turned slowly to Akaashi. 

A soft embarrassed closed-eyed smile on the angel’s face. 

Bokuto’s gaze returned to the pillow in his arms as buried his face into it. 

His white hair with black tips falling on the pillow along with his conspicuous embarrassment since his ears were bright red. 

Bokuto made some weird happy noises while murdering his pillow. 

Akaashi reached out to touch Bokuto’s soft hair, messing it up a little though it was already messy from sleeping. 

Bokuto released the tortured pillow and hugged Akaashi’s waist. 

Akaashi’s heart jumped and his gaze fell onto Bokuto whose face was pressed on the side of his waist and under the pillow. 

Akaashi smoothed out Bokuto’s hair.

The two stayed like that for a good bit in silence; Akaashi slowly touching Bokuto’s hair and Bokuto holding Akaashi. 

A serene moment. One that is special. One that will never happen again. 

Bokuto’s boisterousness is his charm point after all. Akaashi would be concerned if Bokuto became quiet all of a sudden. 

Eventually, Akaashi said,  **“You need to get ready and eat before training, Kou.”**

Bokuto raised his head with puppy eyes and pleaded,  **“Just a little while longer…”**

How could Akaashi resist? 

He looked away, trying to keep his wits about him, and replied,  **“Just 5 more minutes, okay?”**

**“Yay!”** Bokuto grinned. 

Though before Akaashi had to make Bokuto get up, the doorbell rang. 

Bokuto pouted as Akaashi motioned him to check the door. 


	16. Chapter 16

Bokuto checked the receiver to see who it was. 

Atsumu was outside, yelling at him to open the door. 

Bokuto opened the door and Atsumu raised his bags,  **"Brought you breakfast! Let's eat!"**

**"Hey Tsumu, is Omiomi not home?"**

**"Yeah, he's gone to his parents' place. How'd you know?"** Atsumu asked. 

**"Because you always come here or to Shoyo's when Omi is away,"** Bokuto laughed. 

**"Hey! I'm used to always having company, okay? Osamu and I have always been together and after we went our separate ways, I ended up with Omi-kun. So I can't help it!"** Atsumu defended. 

Bokuto laughed and replied,  **“I’m just teasing, come in.”**

Atsumu huffed and walked in. He put the food he brought on the kitchen counter. 

**“Make yourself comfortable. I need to brush my teeth and all,”** Bokuto said, returning to his room.

**“Clearly,”** Atsumu shot back, pointing his finger to his head.

Bokuto’s bed head was pretty wild and probably would have been worse if Akaashi hadn’t smoothed it out earlier. 

Bokuto was a heavy and messy sleeper. 

Bokuto ignored the remark and closed the bedroom door behind him. 

Akaashi was still there, wondering who had come. 

**“Just Tsum-Tsum here with breakfast,”** Bokuto said. 

**“Ah, I see. Better get ready then,”** Akaashi said. 

Bokuto nodded and headed to the bathroom. 

Akaashi flew to the living room where Atsumu was sitting and glanced over the food that Atsumu brought. 

Of course, it was fatty tuna and yakiniku. Foods that 100% did NOT fall into the breakfast category. 

As usual, Atsumu was taking advantage of the fact that Sakusa wasn’t around to judge him for his poor health choices. 

Unbeknownst to Atsumu, Kita was judging him for that and so was Akaashi. 

Akaashi sighed and let it go. Since it wasn’t every day that Bokuto had yakiniku for breakfast. 

Atsumu was on the couch, frowning at his phone. Then he made an incoherent angry noise, startling Akaashi. Kita nodded at him in apology and stared at his human in disdain. 

Akaashi mentally gave Kita words of encouragement. 

Bokuto returned as Atsumu made that weird noise. He asked, teasingly,  **“What’s up? Did Omi not reply to you?”**

Atsumu pouted, “ **No…”**

**“That means yes. Let’s eat. You know very well that Omi doesn’t like texting a lot,”** Bokuto chuckled. 

**“Buuuuuuut, I’m his boyfriend! How would you feel if your significant other didn’t reply to you!”** Atsumu said. 

Bokuto laughed sheepishly and said,  **“I wouldn’t know,,, I don’t have one, remember?”**

Bokuto looked over at Akaashi.

_ ‘What are we now?’ _

_ ‘We like each other?’ _

**“Agh! Let’s just eat!”** Atsumu huffed as he rolled off the sofa and joined Bokuto at the kitchen counter and snapped him out of his thoughts. 

Atsumu’s frown turned upside down in a millisecond as he took out the boxes of fatty tuna. Stars danced in Bokuto’s eyes as his eyes laid on the boxes of yakiniku. 

**“Tsum-Tsum! You absolute angel!”** Bokuto yelled, holding Atsumu into a bone-crushing hug. 

**“I-I know I’m amazing. But l-let go, I can’t breathe,”** Atsumu replied, pushing Bokuto away. 

Bokuto finally let him go and the two sat down and had their “breakfast”. Kita just shook his head, watching the two stuff their faces with foods that normally should be lunch or dinner. 

**“Ahh, that was so good!”** Bokuto said, falling back on his chair and patting his belly.

He glanced over at Atsumu with his satisfied expression intact. Atsumu was also in a similar state. The two lugged themselves to the sofa and fell into a food coma. 

Akaashi walked over to Bokuto,  **“You had too much, Kou. You have practice soon.”**

Bokuto’s ears perked up and he said out loud, **“Tsumu, don’t we have practice? I don’t think I can move after eating so much.”**

Atsumu rolled onto his back and grinned,  **“You thought I didn’t think this through? Coach texted us to rest today because he has some matters to attend to.”**

**“Oh! I haven’t checked my phone all morning. I’ll continue to stay in this vegetative state then,”** Bokuto replied, releasing a comfortable sigh and sinking into the sofa. 

Atsumu grunted in response as he did the same thing. 

Akaashi shook his head, as did Kita. 

The two of them stayed like that for a bit till Atsumu sat up and said, **“Let’s go somewhere. I wanna get back to Omiomi for ignoring my texts.”**

Bokuto grinned,  **“You’re so petty, Tsumu. But sounds like fun. Let’s call Shoyo too!”**

Atsumu nodded as he texted Hinata. 

Of course, being the Miya Atsumu, he asked Hinata to hang out in the group chat that Sakusa is also in. 

Within half an hour, Hinata was at Bokuto’s door. 

**“Hey hey hey!”** Bokuto said as he let Hinata inside. 

**“Bokuto-san! Atsumu-san! Where should we go?”** Hinata asked, excited. 

**“Sit down first, Shoyo,”** Bokuto laughed. 

Hinata sheepishly smiled and joined Atsumu on the sofa. 

Atsumu was again frowning at his phone. 

**“What happened now?”** Bokuto asked. 

Atsumu showed his phone to Bokuto and Hinata peeked in from the side. 

Bokuto looked at his phone. It was a picture of Sakusa and Iizuna, posted by Iizuna. The caption read ‘On a hike with my favorite kouhai ^^’ 

Bokuto chuckled since Sakusa’s expression was so dead. He looked like he wanted to get out of there ASAP. 

**“Why are you sulking? Omiomi doesn’t look like he’s having a great time. He was probably forced to go,”** Bokuto asked, looking at Atsumu who was pouting and looking away. 

**“...Because he never goes hiking with me, no matter how much I beg him. And he just goes with his former senpai even if he was unwilling,”** Atsumu pouted, acting like a child. 

Bokuto found this way too entertaining. He burst out laughing and Atsumu shot him a glare. 

Bokuto ignored the glare and glanced at Hinata who was sitting on the sofa trying so hard not to laugh. 

He didn’t want to upset or disrespect his senior. Poor Hinata. 

Bokuto, being Atsumu’s senior, laughed without restraint. To which Atsumu responded with a menacing glare. It didn’t affect Bokuto at all though. 

Bokuto finished laughing and suggested,  **“Well, let’s go on a hiking trip too. What do you say?”**

**“It’d be nice since there’s no training today,”** He added. 

**“Yes! We should go on a hike!”** Hinata pitched in, standing before Atsumu and pleading. 

Atsumu stood up as well and threw his phone on the sofa. 

**“We better take lots of pictures and let Omi-kun know what he’s missing out on!”** Atsumu declared with a huff. 

Kita shook his head at Atsumu as Bokuto roared with laughter. Even Akaashi let out a small giggle. Kageyama just stared at the humans, not understanding their reactions. 

Miya Atsumu, when he was off the court, was like a child in an adult’s body. 

Though, the same could be said for Bokuto. 

Their days consisted of days like the very one that unfolded at the moment; they all exhibited seriousness on the court and crack-headedness off the court. 

These were the peaceful and happy days. 

Not a care for anything besides volleyball and food and everyday problems. 


	17. Chapter 17

**“I’m not in proper attire for hiking though,”** Atsumu said. 

Hinata looked at his own outfit and laughed sheepishly,  **“Me too.”**

**“We can stop by your places to get the things you need, it’s still early,”** Bokuto said. 

Atsumu and Hinata nodded.  **“Let me get ready. Turn on the T.V. I won’t be long,”** Bokuto said as he left for his bedroom again.

Akaashi followed him in. Bokuto flipped through his closet for his tracksuits. He took out a blue tracksuit. 

**"Don't forget to get a good pair of socks and your hiking shoes,"** Akaashi reminded. 

**"Ooh! Where are my socks?"** Bokuto asked, looking around. 

Akaashi sighed and said,  **"The second drawer."**

Bokuto made an 'o' with his mouth and shuffled to the drawer. 

He got changed and dug through his closet again for a backpack. 

As he was about to open his door to leave, Akaashi said,  **"Do you have a map or a compass?"**

Bokuto turned to face Akaashi,  **"What would I do without you?"**

**"I'll get it all sorted because I already have the most important thing,"** Bokuto grinned. 

As he said that he grabbed Akaashi's hand and brought it up.

Akaashi blushed and took his hand back. 

**"Go on already! They're waiting!"** Akaashi said flustered. 

**"Okay okay!"** Bokuto laughed, leaving the room. 

Outside Atsumu and Hinata were watching some random show. 

Hinata leaned to Atsumu's ear,  **"Is Bokuto-san talking to himself again?"**

**"Just ignore it, you know he gets like that,"** Atsumu said, focusing on the T. V. screen. 

Hinata moved back and looked over at Bokuto's door. 

Kageyama and Kita sighed, nodding to each other in agreement that they must inform Akaashi to be careful not to make Bokuto seem like an absolute nutcase.

Bokuto came out of his room, followed by Akaashi who had composed himself already.

**“Let’s get going!”**

**“The map, Kou,”** Akaashi reminded. 

**“Ah right, the map, where is it?”** Bokuto muttered to himself, shuffling around in his living room drawers and cupboards. 

**“The last drawer,”** Akaashi sighed. 

Bokuto shuffled through that drawer and found it there. 

The way Akaashi knew where everything was kept and Bokuto didn’t.

**“Hey, Tsumu, Shoyo, do you guys have a compass?”** Bokuto asked the two who were watching the T.V intently. 

**“Hmm?”** Atsumu muttered.

His full attention was on the drama that was playing. 

**“A compass!”** Bokuto said, louder. 

**“Uh, yeah I do,”** Atsumu replied. 

**“Well, let’s get going. We gotta stop by your places and the convenience store,”** Bokuto said. 

Hinata’s attention shifted back to their hiking plans. He lit up and stood up, dragging Atsumu up with him. The latter being reluctant because of being so invested in the drama that was playing on the T.V. 

With much difficulty to get Atsumu to leave the drama halfway, they all stood outside Bokuto’s apartment door. Atsumu was glaring at the two. 

**“Don’t you want to have an absolutely amazing time and show what Omiomi is missing?”** Bokuto asked. 

Atsumu’s expression immediately got replaced by a determined look. 

**“Let’s get this hiking trip going!”** Atsumu charged. 

_ ‘That was way too easy…’  _

Akaashi sighed,  _ ‘A lot like Koutarou, to be honest.’  _

Bokuto grabbed his bag and the three headed out to their first stop: Atsumu’s apartment. 

Atsumu unlocked his apartment door and the three shuffled in. 

**“Sit in on the couch or something. I’ll get changed and find the compass real quick,”** Atsumu said, tossing his jacket on the couch. 

Bokuto and Hinata plopped on the couch and talked about where to go hiking. There were many great places in Osaka to hike. 

**“What about the Minoh Waterfalls?”** Hinata suggested.

**“It’s a bit easier trail to hike on though. I want to get a good workout,”** Bokuto said, thinking about places to hike. 

**“What about Mount Izumi Katsuragi?”** He added.

Atsumu returned, in a light blue tracksuit. 

**“What are you guys on about?”**

**“We’re just talking about where we should go for hiking,”** Hinata explained. 

**“We should go to Mount Nijo! It’s stunning there,”** Atsumu said. 

**“Ooh! I haven’t been there before. Let’s go there!”** Hinata said, looking at Bokuto. 

Bokuto grinned and said,  **“Well, that’s settled. Let’s get going to Shoyo’s house now.”**

The other two nodded. Atsumu grabbed his bag and so did Bokuto. 

They took a short walk to Hinata’s apartment. 

They all lived quite close by since their gym and office were in Ohasuhigashi city district of Higashiosaka. 

Hinata unlocked his apartment and shuffled to his room. Bokuto and Atsumu just plopped down on the couch, scrolling through their phone. 

Hinata returned quickly and the trio headed to their last stop, the convenience store, before heading off to their hike site. 

Bokuto browsed through the various shelves of the convenience store, thinking meticulously about what snacks to buy for the trip. 

Akaashi just stared at Bokuto in disdain and was about to tell him to get the necessary items until Atsumu caught his eye so he looked over at the blonde setter.

He noticed that Atsumu picked out the necessary stuff like bottles of water and bento boxes. Seeing what Atsumu had bought, Akaashi sighed in relief. At least one of them was responsible enough even though all of them were full-fledged adults. 

Bokuto and Hinata came out of the convenience store with bags of snacks. Both having a content expression on their faces.

**“We’re going on a hike, yknow?”** Atsumu sighed. 

**“Snacks are essential for hikes!”** Bokuto replied confidently. 

Hinata agreed with him and Akaashi just shook his head. 

**“Let’s get going, I ordered the train tickets on my phone. The next train is in 20 minutes,”** Atsumu said. 

Akaashi nodded in approval, appreciating Atsumu being responsible. 

Kita just sighed, knowing why he was acting so responsible. It was all so he can successfully rub their amazing hike trip on Sakusa’s face. 

**“Let’s go!”** Bokuto cheered, punching the air. 

Hinata did the same, following Bokuto. 

Atsumu sighed and then cracked a smile before joining the two. 

The trio headed to the train station, all equipped with the mentality and resources for the hike. 


	18. Chapter 18

The trio got onto the train after waiting for 10 minutes. Getting comfortable in their seats, they began their usual banter. 

The angels all shrank in size and sat comfortably on their human’s shoulder. Aside from Akaashi since he was still visible to Bokuto and he didn’t want to startle the poor human.

Atsumu wanted to take a short nap before the hike so they all stopped talking. Hinata was on his phone and Bokuto looked out his window. 

His mind drifted off to his high school life. It was like what he had now. Playing volleyball and wreaking havoc with his friends. 

Well now, his former high school rivals were his teammates and the rivalry continued except they were all on the same side of the net. 

He breathed in deeply, satisfied with the way his life turned out. 

He couldn’t have asked for more. He had a loving family, great friends and he was playing volleyball as his career. A total dream come true.

And most of all, he had his darling guardian angel.

As he thought about Akaashi, he stole a glance at the angel who was observing him. 

Their eyes met and Bokuto flashed Akaashi a huge smile. Akaashi’s expression softened as he returned the smile. 

Bokuto’s eyes rested on Akaashi for a little bit, admiring his beauty. He couldn’t fathom how he could be this attractive. 

Those beautiful gun metallic eyes, that soft and silky hair that fit his face perfectly. 

And most of all, the most precious and beautiful smile he had ever laid his eyes upon.

Akaashi fidgeted a little since Bokuto was staring at him. 

He could hear the flow of blood coursing through his veins clearly as those golden eyes stared into his soul. 

It made him conscious of himself. 

He looked away, embarrassed. Bokuto then shifted his attention back to the window and returned to being lost in his thoughts. 

The rest of the journey was Atsumu snoring away, Bokuto and Hinata looking out and occasionally making fun of Atsumu’s sleeping form. 

The train came to a halt and jolted Atsumu awake. He woke up, disoriented, and then regained his bearings after a big yawn. 

**“Sleep well?”** Bokuto asked.

**“Wonderful, let’s get hiking!”** Atsumu cheered. 

Hinata cheered as the trio left the train. 

They took a short bus to Mount Nijo, admiring the scenery leading to the mountain. 

The three of them stood at the foot of the mountain and looked up at the huge landscape before them. 

Breathing in the clean base of the mountain air, they looked at each other. 

Adrenaline pumping into their veins as they cheered,  **“Let’s go!”**

Bokuto, Atsumu, and Hinata began their climb. 

Bokuto set the pace a little slower than he’d usually like which the rest followed so they could admire the beautiful scenery around them. 

The path was relatively smooth except for a few rocky bumps here and there; steep drops right next to the trail.

As they got onto higher ground, Hinata peered down a steep drop. 

**“Don’t get too close to the edge unless you wanna fall,”** Atsumu warned. 

Hinata retreated quickly, joining the other two. Bokuto laughed and charged forward. 

The entire place was filled with trees with orange and yellow leaves along with shrubs and bushes, mounds of rocks on the side away from the trail. 

Autumn leaves were spread everywhere on the ground and fluttered around in the wind. 

Bokuto took in deep breaths of the cool autumn air. 

Mount Nijo was absolutely stunning during the fall season. 

**"Look!"** Hinata said, pointing to a nearby tree.

A little squirrel scurried up the tree, followed by two more of them. 

**"They must be getting ready for winter,"** Atsumu said, grinning. 

**"Too fast for me to take a picture though."**

**"The view is stunning though,"** Bokuto said, staring at the horizon since they were pretty high at this point. 

It was all rather quiet. Hardly anyone but them. 

The sound of woodpeckers pecking away at the trees and the sounds of squirrels and the likes scuttering about on the ground. 

**“Hang on, I need to take pictures of the scenery,”** Atsumu said.

Bokuto and Hinata nodded and just looked around and admired the view.

Just being in nature brought a feeling of serenity. 

A peace that is unlike anything else. 

Feeling more grounded than ever. 

Bokuto looked over at Atsumu who was meticulously taking pictures with his DSLR. 

Atsumu’s pettiness wasn’t the only reason why he was taking pictures so intently. 

Believe it or not, he was actually fond of photography and was pretty good at it. 

Hinata just peered down the steep drop again, observing how far down it went. 

Bokuto took in the clean mountain air, relaxing all the muscles in his body. He was rather sore and tense from practice lately. 

Being in nature rejuvenated him and the light exercise was a serotonin boost. 

Atsumu finished up and the trio headed higher up, enjoying the cool air and beautiful nature as they went. 

The trio continued up the trail, chattering about and relishing in the gorgeous scenery Mt. Nijo had to offer. It only got more stunning the higher they went. 

Mt. Nijo truly was a spectacle to see. 

Eventually, they reached the summit, hardly breaking a sweat. 

The scenery at the summit blew them away.

The sky stretched across the horizon which was cut by the various mountain ranges. 

The land stretched in front of them; stunning green grass with patches of gorgeous flowers all over the place even though it was the fall season. 

The trees made a ring around the cliff end as if it were moved to look like that and an opening with no trees portrayed the beautiful sky.

The sun was still high up so the sky was a brilliant blue hue. 

The trio just stood in awe, staring at the vast sky before them.

Holding their breaths unconsciously until Hinata broke the silence. 

**“Wow! I-It’s beautiful! The air is so cool and fresh!”** He said, taking in a deep breath. 

**“Yeah, what a scenery!”** Bokuto said, grinning.

He looked at Hinata and Atsumu one his left and then Akaashi at his left and then back to the sky and the land before him.

His gaze then fell on Akaashi and remained there. 

The wind blew his beautiful dark hair back elegantly; his gun-metallic eyes reflecting the color of the sky - a brilliant blue.

Akaashi blushed and turned away after noticing Bokuto’s stares. He does it so often yet Akaashi felt as if he would never get used to it. 

Bokuto’s brilliant golden eyes seemed to make his stomach flip and heartbeat out of his chest. 

Hinata went running off towards the opening of the sky and Bokuto joined him, to which Atsumu yelled at them and also joined them. 

The group enjoyed the gorgeous nature at the summit and picked a beautiful spot to have lunch, chatting away in the midst of a natural wonderland. 

The feeling of serenity filled the air; tense muscles and stress disappeared along with the ever-so-slow moving clouds.

Atsumu made sure he didn’t miss any chances at taking as many photographs. 

Bokuto appreciated it because he really loved to keep memories in the form of photographs. 

To him, they captured the moment and preserved it forever. 

Time may have passed in reality but the wonder of that moment would remain forever in the form of a picture. 

Before they knew it, the sun was setting. 

Hues of yellow, orange, and red filled the sky; even specks of purple. 

The beauty of the sunset at the summit was indescribable; straight out of a picture book. 

It felt like being on top of the world; truly fitting its local description of being the gateway to heaven. 


	19. Chapter 19

**“We should get going before it gets dark,”** Atsumu said as he got his things together. 

Hinata and Bokuto nodded and did the same. 

As they were about to head down, Bokuto said,  **“You guys go ahead. I’ll come in a bit. We can meet at the checkpoint we passed to come up here.”**

Atsumu and Hinata looked at each other and then at Bokuto. Akaashi looked at Bokuto confused. 

**“Alright, don’t take too long and be careful. We’ll wait at the checkpoint then,”** Atsumu said. 

With that, the two descended with their angels. 

Akaashi tilted his head to Bokuto. 

**“I just wanted to see the sunset for a little while longer with you, Kaashi,”** Bokuto said with a smile. 

Bokuto’s voice didn’t falter at all but Akaashi felt as if his throat was constricted. 

**“Just being able to see this with you makes me happy beyond imagination. It’s memorable to come to see this with my friends and I like them very much.“**

**“But with you, it gives me a different level of happiness.”**

**“I’m happy, Akaashi. Thank you for always protecting me!”** Bokuto said, a soft smile plastered on his face as he faced Akaashi. 

Akaashi’s face scrunched up as he tried to hold back his tears. 

Yet hot tears fell down his cheeks as he stuttered out,  **“B-but I wasn’t able to p-protect you from that a-accident. A-and even after, I w-wasn’t there the entire time when you l-lost your m-memories. I d-don’t deserve to b-be t-thanked.”**

Bokuto freaked and yelled,  **“N-no! Don’t cry! I didn’t mean to make you cry!”**

His first instinct after freaking out was to hold Akaashi tightly in his arms. 

Bokuto patted Akaashi’s back and whispered,  **“Shh, I know you protect me from everything that you are capable of. I know how compassionate and kind you are. Don’t cry, please. I was in a really bad place before and then you appeared before me and brought joy into my life. I’m safe and healthy now and most of all, I’m happy. So please don’t cry, you’re prettier when you’re smiling.”**

Bokuto cupped Akaashi’s face in his cheeks, wiping away Akaashi’s tears using his thumbs. 

Akaashi stared into Bokuto’s eyes and tears started falling again.

**“I-I’m just glad you’re o-okay. P-please stay s-safe. I don’t think I can h-handle it if s-something happens to you a-again..”** Akaashi whispered in between sobs.

Bokuto bumped his nose with Akaashi’s and whispered,  **“I’m not going anywhere, Kaashi. I love you too much.”**

**“I-I l-love you t-too,”** Akaashi whispered, and through his tears, a soft smile emerged. 

His heart told him that the feelings he felt towards Bokuto were what the humans called ‘love’. 

Bokuto stared into Akaashi’s eyes and leaned in closing his eyes, kissing Akaashi.

Surprised for a split second, Akaashi’s eyes widened. 

He then returned the kiss, melting into Bokuto’s embrace. 

The sunset was the most beautiful backdrop for a special moment between the two of them. 

Both of them belong to different worlds; two completely different entities. 

Parting for air, they stared into each other’s eyes for a good minute. 

Until Akaashi averted his gaze and said,  **“You shouldn’t keep them waiting and it’s going to get dark soon.”**

Bokuto let him go and pouted but that was soon replaced by a wide smile as Akaashi sighed and smiled at him. 

The sunset illuminating Akaashi’s features; his eyes reflecting a deeper hue of the orange and yellow colors. 

**“Let’s get going!”** Bokuto yelled, extending his hand to Akaashi.

Akaashi took his hand and they entwined their hands together; a perfect fit like two jigsaw puzzles. 

Bokuto gripped Akaashi’s hand and pulled him towards himself, placing a kiss on his forehead and then running off to the exit of the summit. 

Akaashi stood there, stunned and embarrassed. His heart beating out of his chest and his face crimson like it had been the entire time. 

Akaashi let out an awkward cry and flew after Bokuto. 

Joining Bokuto, Akaashi said,  **“That wasn’t fair.”**

**“All is fair in love and war!”** Bokuto called out, laughing.

Akaashi smiled to himself and landed before Bokuto and planted a kiss on his cheek. 

**“All is fair in love and war,”** Akaashi repeated with a sly smile on his face.

Bokuto touched his cheek and a red hue dusted his cheeks.

**“Time out! My heart can’t take this, Kaashi!”** Bokuto whined, hiding his face. 

Akaashi laughed lightly and Bokuto peeked at him. 

With his large puppy eyes, he reached out his hand to Akaashi. 

Akaashi took his hand and they hiked down. 

They quickly made it to the checkpoint where Atsumu and Hinata were waiting for Bokuto. 

**“What took you so long?”** Atsumu asked, raising his brow. 

**“Enjoying the view,”** Bokuto said, looking at Akaashi.

To Atsumu and Hinata, Bokuto just averted his gaze. 

They shrugged it off and headed down the mountain. 

Reaching the foot of the mountain, they managed to catch the last bus to the train station. 

Atsumu and Hinata passed out on the train back to their city. Bokuto mostly looked out the window into the darkness and faint silhouettes of the landscapes and lights from the towns. 

Occasionally, flashing Akaashi a smile. 

Kita and Kageyama just shrank in size and sat on their human’s shoulders as they were fast asleep. 

That made Akaashi think about how he hadn’t done that ever since he showed himself to Bokuto.

Before appearing in front of Bokuto, Akaashi did it quite often since Bokuto was always darting from one place to another. 

He was thinking to do it but refrained from it since he didn’t want to startle Bokuto and wake up the other two. 

The train ride home was peaceful; Atsumu and Hinata stayed asleep the entire time and Bokuto eventually dozed off. 

The hiking trip was pretty exhausting but a memorable trip for the group. 

Extra special for Bokuto and Akaashi. 

Akaashi watched Bokuto sleep soundly, his chest rising and falling slowly.

The train came to a stop and Atsumu twitched in his sleep and opened his eyes. 

He shook Bokuto and Hinata awake.

**“Let’s go, we’ve reached,”** Atsumu said with a yawn.

The other two awoke, disoriented. 

Rubbing the sleep out of their eyes, they got together their things and got off the train. 

Stretching his arms and yawning, Bokuto said,  **“Let’s get dinner together!”**

**“Yeah! I’m starving!”** Hinata agreed. 

**“Let’s get takeout at my place. I’m too tired to go anywhere else to eat,”** Atsumu groaned. 

Bokuto and Hinata eyed each other and simultaneously grabbed each of Atsumu’s arms and yelled,  **“Let’s go!”**

**“Woah woah woah!”**

**“Wait, this is fine. I’m tired. Take me home, peasants!”** Atsumu declared. 

Bokuto and Hinata roared in laughter, retorting,  **“Yes, pain-in-the-ass king!”**

**“Hey!”** Atsumu pouted, laughing right after. 

The trio made their way back to Atsumu’s apartment; getting a lot of stares due to the odd way they were walking. 

Not that they cared since they were too occupied with laughing and making fun of each other. 


	20. Chapter 20

Atsumu took out his keys and unlocked his apartment. The trio filed in. 

Atsumu walked in first and met face-to-face with Sakusa. 

Atsumu just stared at him and said, **“Oh, you're back. How were your parents?”**

**“Oh hi, Omiomi!”** Bokuto said as he joined Atsumu.

**“Hello, Omi-san!”** Hinata added behind Bokuto.

**“They’re fine. How was your hike?”** Sakusa asked. 

**“Let’s go to the living room and order food first, I’m starving!”** Atsumu said, moving past Sakusa. 

Sakusa frowned because usually, Atsumu would greet him with a hug regardless of who was around. 

They all followed Atsumu to the living room and ordered sushi. 

Bokuto and Hinata proceeded to watch Sakusa trying to touch Atsumu but the setter purposefully dodging him. 

Atsumu was very eager to show Sakusa the pictures from their hike though. 

While swiftly dodging Sakusa’s advances, he proceeded to show him the pictures he took. 

Bokuto and Hinata did their best to relax there but Sakusa’s menace was seeping out. 

The food came and the two of them focused all their attention on eating. 

After, stuffing their faces, Atsumu said,  **“Just stay the night, it’s pretty late. Both of your pajamas are still here from last time. I stopped Kiyoomi from throwing them away.”**

Bokuto and Hinata looked at each other and gulped. 

Atsumu never called Sakusa by his first name fully; it was always the nickname. 

They were about to refuse since they were scared of what might happen but Atsumu glared at them and repeated with a forced smile,  **“You. Guys. Should. Really. Stay.”**

Chills running down their spines, both of them nodded their heads furiously. 

Sakusa just frowned on the side; upset by Atsumu’s coldness. 

They decided to watch a movie after eating. They made popcorn even though they just stuffed their faces. Always room for popcorn when watching a movie.

They ended up with Bokuto and Hinata feeling extremely on the edge. 

Their seating arrangement ended up like this: from the left Bokuto then Atsumu and then Hinata and Sakusa last. 

Bokuto and Hinata couldn’t even concentrate on the movie because they couldn’t move but they could feel Sakusa’s menace. Hinata especially since he was next to Sakusa AND Atsumu. 

Halfway through the movie, their popcorn finished so Atsumu got up to get a refill.

He shuffled and passed Hinata only to be grabbed by Sakusa before he could cross over. 

**“Woah!”** Atsumu stumbled and fell on Sakusa’s lap as he intended it. 

The empty bowl was flying mid-air but Hinata caught it before disaster struck. 

Bokuto and Hinata both yelled as the bowl flew and Atsumu fell.

**“What are you doing, Omi-kun?!”** Atsumu yelled.

Sakusa didn’t respond and instead kissed Atsumu on the neck and then on his lips and shut him up. 

Bokuto and Hinata quickly averted their gaze and slipped off to the balcony.

Atsumu broke the kiss, pushing Sakusa away.

**“W-what do you think you’re doing?”** Atsumu stuttered, blushing madly. 

**“Because you’re avoiding me,”** Sakusa pouted. 

Trying to keep up the petty act, Atsumu responded,  **“Well, why don’t you get your senpai to give you attention?”**

Sakusa gave him a look with his pout and said,  **“You know I missed you so much today. Iizuna-senpai dragged me there and I couldn’t say no, we haven’t met in so long. Mom was glaring at me to not be rude as well.”**

Atsumu’s facade broke the moment Sakusa made that face. 

He made an incoherent noise and hugged Sakusa.

**“I’m just teasing you! You’re so cute! Our hike trip was maybe a way to get back to you but I got such great pictures!”** Atsumu blurted out.

Sakusa’s frown softened,  **“Yeah, they looked stunning.”**

Atsumu ran his fingers through Sakusa’s curls and whispered in his ear,  **“You’re the most stunning though.”**

Sakusa grabbed Atsumu’s face and kissed him. 

Atsumu shifted his position and kissed him deeply, his legs wrapped around Sakusa’s waist.

While the couple was displaying PDA, the other two had slipped out and been standing out at the balcony looking at the night sky and talking. 

**“Ahh...That was awkward!”** Hinata said, stretching his arms. 

**“I know right,”** Bokuto replied, laughing.

**“Those two are so adorable though but they have no tact for others,”** Hinata said, looking at the glass balcony door. 

Nothing inside could be seen from the outside though. 

**“Especially Omiomi,”** Bokuto chuckled.

Talking about the two inside made Bokuto think of Akaashi. His mind wandered off to the moment just a few hours earlier. 

Bokuto zoned out and then abruptly Hinata faced Bokuto and asked,  **“Do you have anyone you like, Bokuto-san?”**

Bokuto snapped back from his daze after hearing that.

His face turned bright red, even the tips of his ears.

**“U-uhh...I...Um-“**

Bokuto looked the other way and came face-to-face with Akaashi who was also turning a little pink. 

Their eyes met and Bokuto whipped his head back to Hinata and stuttered, “ **Uh-Y-yeah I do…”**

Akaashi flushed and Kageyama, who was sitting comfortably on Hinata’s shoulder and chilling, perked up. 

Hinata’s eyes lit up and he flustered,  **“Wow! Really?! Who?! Where?! When?!”**

**“Uh…, you don’t know them…,”** Bokuto muttered. 

**“Ah, I see,”** Hinata replied, receding after realizing that Bokuto may not be comfortable talking about it. 

**“A person Bokuto-san likes must be very kind and well, uh, responsible…,”** Hinata said, looking up at the stars twinkling in the night sky. 

Bokuto gripped the railings of the balcony, stared at his knuckles, he spoke,  **“Yes, he is kind...Far kinder than anyone can imagine.”**

**“I mean he is patient and puts up with me,”** He added as a soft smile appeared on his face as he talked about Akaashi. 

Akaashi sighed a tiny smile. 

**“He makes me extremely happy and I’m grateful to have him in my life. He’s a blessing,”** Bokuto continued, his happiness spilling out as words.

After all, he loved Akaashi and couldn’t remember how he lived before Akaashi appeared before him. 

Technically, Akaashi had always been there with him. All his life. But being able to see him, touch him, and talk to him felt like a dream. 

**“You must really love him! I pray for your happiness, Bokuto-san,”** Hinata replied with a grin.

Bokuto laughed and ruffled Hinata’s hair. 

**“Thank you, Shoyo! You too, I hope you find your happiness!”**

**“My happiness is volleyball!”** Hinata declared, eyes gleaming.

Kageyama pouted a little as he laid flat on Hinata’s shoulder which eventually turned into a tiny smile. Akaashi chuckled a little and tried to hide it. 

**“I mean like a person. Ah well! Anything as long as you’re happy, Shoyo!”** Bokuto said, swinging an arm around Hinata.

**“Let’s go in, hopefully, they are done with their PDA,”** Bokuto added, dragging Hinata in with him. 

Bokuto was about to yell at Atsumu and Sakusa about their PDA but stopped before he said anything.

The two of them were fast asleep with Atsumu still on top of Sakusa.

The day was pretty exhausting for all of them. 

Bokuto and Hinata looked at each other and nodded. 

Bokuto went to get blankets from their room and draped them around the two while Hinata shut off the movie that was still playing.

The two shuffled and dug out the sleeping bags they always used when they stayed over, which was quite often. 

They got ready for bed and slept. After all, they were all exhausted from their hiking trip. 


	21. Chapter 21

The warmth of fall soon faded as yellow and orange leaves on the ground were replaced with pure white snow. 

The trees that were filled with warm tones were replaced with stark and empty branches as the skies turned grey. 

Yet, the warmth in their hearts remained. 

Bokuto and Akaashi’s love only grew stronger from that day in fall.

But with greater love and greater care for one another, comes a time when the two don’t see eye to eye. 

A cold winter’s evening, Bokuto trudged through the snow and stomped on the ground to remove the excess snow before unlocking his apartment. 

It was a hard day at practice and Bokuto wasn’t in his best condition. 

Mostly because he had been thinking. 

Thinking a lot about Akaashi and himself.

About their future. 

As they spent more time together, Bokuto’s mind wandered to the essence of their relationship. 

Bokuto was a human; he would age and eventually run out of time.

Akaashi was a guardian angel; he wouldn’t age and only be assigned to another human being when Bokuto’s time ran out. 

They were different; right from the core of their existence.

Bokuto came to realize it as he slowly started comprehending who Akaashi really was.

He never talked to Akaashi about it but the thought was ingrained in his mind. 

What would happen if he died?

He would hate to hurt Akaashi like that and dangerously his mind floated to the idea that they shouldn’t be together.

Of course, it would hurt like anything. He hadn’t loved anyone as much as he loved Akaashi. 

But in the long run, it’d be better for Akaashi. 

Akaashi mattered so much to him, he would hate that he would hurt for a much longer time than he ever would.

Bokuto sighed deeply. He plopped down his gear and headed to the shower. 

In the shower, Bokuto’s thoughts got all jumbled up. 

His anxiety grew as he worried about their future. 

A future that would eventually leave Akaashi in tears. 

Possibly. 

But the sheer possibility that Akaashi would be hurt, drove Bokuto crazy. 

He would absolutely hate that yet he couldn’t cease to be human, that was not an option.

Though he wished he wasn’t just so he could be with Akaashi forever. 

But it cannot happen.

Alas, their fates turned out to be like this. 

One was a mortal and the other was not.

Bokuto stood in the shower, warm water continuously soaking hair as the possible future scenarios played in his head like a broken record. 

Bokuto stepped out of the shower eventually and flopped onto his bed, face-first onto the pillow. 

His dripping wet hair, soaking the pillow. 

**“Dry your hair, Koutarou. You’ll catch a cold,”** Akaashi said.

Bokuto remained on the bed, his face still wedged into the pillow.

After a few seconds of silence, he muttered,  **“What are we, Kaashi?”**

Akaashi looked at Bokuto, confused.

**“What do you mean?”**

**“Do you think we have a future?”**

**“Of course, you have a long life ahead of you, Koutarou,”** Akaashi replied, baffled by the sudden question. 

Still laying on the bed, Bokuto said,  **“No, I mean...I’m human...And you’re an angel…”**

**“I’ll pass one day, is there really a future for us?”**

**“Why are you bringing that up right now? You’re still so young,”** Akaashi replied, thinking about why Bokuto was talking about this kind of thing. 

**“I am going to die one day and you won’t,”** Bokuto raised his voice. 

**“But that ‘one day’ is not now. What happened, Koutarou?”** Akaashi asked. 

Bokuto sat up, cross-legged, and faced Akaashi with a pained expression,  **“We’re not meant to be together...We’re too different…”**

**“W-why? Where is this coming from?”** Akaashi asked, feeling tears welling in his eyes. 

**“I’m going to grow old and die, Kaashi...I don’t want you to hurt after I die so please we should just end this now before we’re in too deep,”** Bokuto said, strain in his voice and the look of pure pain in his expression. 

_ ‘But I’m already in too deep…’ _

**“No, what? Please, let’s talk this through. What’s going through your mind, Kou?”** Akaashi pleaded, tears dripping down his face.

**“Please, don’t make this harder, Kaashi. Please, I just don’t want you to be hurt…,”** Bokuto insisted. 

**“I don’t get it...What brought this on?”** Akaashi asked as fresh tears rolled down his cheeks.

Bokuto couldn’t keep his tears at bay any longer.

**“Just listen to me!”** Bokuto yelled, standing up in front of Akaashi.

**“No! Talk to me and explain everything!”** Akaashi yelled back. 

**“I said it already! Why can’t you understand? It’ll be easier for you in the end!”** Bokuto retorted. 

**“I don’t understand! So explain to me,”** Akaashi’s voice quivered. 

Akaashi’s heart tightened and his breath was shallow. 

Tears spilling out without stopping. 

Confusion and a myriad of thoughts plaguing his mind yet he couldn't make head or tail out of it.

**“Kaashi, please, I’m human and I’m going to die. I’m going to break your heart when the time comes...I don’t want to hurt you so I want to end it before that ever happens…,”** Bokuto said, tiredly, tears rolling down his cheeks as well. 

**“You’re already breaking my heart and hurting me right this moment! Why are you afraid for that to happen in the future if you’re going to do it right now?!”** Akaashi yelled, not understanding why Bokuto would do such a thing.

They were so happy; ever since that day in fall. 

So why? 

What happened?

**“Is it just an excuse because you don’t like what we have? If that’s the case, I rather you say that instead of all this!”** Akaashi blurted out, as anger seeped into him.

**“What? No- That’s not it! I’m not making excuses. I’m telling you the wiser choice for your betterment!”** Bokuto fumed.

**“I didn’t ask you to! Why did you tell me you liked me that day if you’re just going to do this to me?!”**

**“Because I meant it but now I’m realizing that this isn’t the best for you!”** Bokuto retorted, words spilling out of his mouth with little thought as anger filled his mind. 

**“Why are you deciding what is good or bad for me?! I didn’t ask you to do any of it!”** Akaashi yelled back, tears streaming down his face. 

**“I don’t care about you! Do whatever you want! I can’t believe you!”** Akaashi finished, not meaning what he said but in the heat of the moment, it came out.

Bokuto responded,  **“Fine! I don't care about you either! I'll do whatever I want!”**

Bokuto stormed out of the apartment without his jacket and with dripping wet hair. 

Unable to contain himself in Bokuto’s apartment, Akaashi flew back to Heaven.

The two of them parted after saying things to each other that they didn't mean. 

Hurt and confusion lingered in their minds as the two headed to no destination in mind, just their subconscious taking them to a familiar place.


	22. Chapter 22

Bokuto stormed out of his apartment without a jacket, only wearing his pajama sweatshirt and joggers.

The dark sky, accompanied by snow falling, made Bokuto feel gloomy and cold.

Adding to the fact that he was already terribly miserable. 

Yet, he ran. 

Ran through the snow without catching a breath, ignoring the freezing cold.

His mind raced as his feet took him to a place he hadn’t visited in a while. 

A park he frequented when he wanted to be completely alone. 

It had been a while since he had Akaashi to talk to and sort out his thoughts.

But now with the conflict with Akaashi, Bokuto subconsciously sought solace in that park. 

Bokuto ceased to run and breathed in deeply. 

His chest rising and falling rapidly. 

His brain was fuzzy from the lack of oxygen.

Cold air entered his lungs yet he felt he couldn’t breathe. 

The cold air hurt his chest yet nothing hurt more than the pain in his heart. 

As his breath steadied a little, he walked over to the swings in the park. 

He swiped off the snow on the seat and sat on the slightly damp swing seat. 

He grabbed the chains of the swing and pushed himself using his feet.

He swung a little and the cold finally hit him as he rubbed his hands together and blew on them to regain some warmth. 

The ever-so-slowly falling snow made everything so much colder as Bokuto shivered by himself in the gloomy park. 

The park lights flickered weekly, adding to the empty and gloomy atmosphere.

Akaashi flew past his dorm building, wiping away his never-stopping tears.

He flew without stopping to the forest behind his dorm building. 

Landing in the little secluded alcove that only he and Suga knew about. 

Suga was leaving the dormitory building when he caught a glimpse of Akaashi flying to the back of the building. He was sure he saw tears.

Forgetting what he left the dorm intending to do, he flew after Akaashi.

To the alcove. 

Suga knew that was where Akaashi was headed. 

Suga pushed past the tree branches, looking for Akaashi amid the trees. 

He quickly found Akaashi who was sobbing into his knees. 

Alarmed, Suga went up to him and gently put an arm around his shoulder, and softly said,  **“What happened?”**

Akaashi lifted his head; eyes teary and filled with pain.

He grabbed Suga and cried into his shoulder.

Suga just patted his back and whispered gentle affirmations. 

Akaashi sniffles slowed down as his tears eventually stopped. 

**“Can you tell me what happened?”** Suga asked, gently as he continued patting Akaashi’s back. 

Akaashi nodded and took a couple of deep breaths. 

Suga sat by Akaashi and looked at him, worried. 

Akaashi muttered something but Suga couldn’t understand it. His voice was strained. 

**“What?”**

Akaashi cleared his throat and slowly began to tell Suga what happened.

**“I don’t understand why he’s doing this now,”** Akaashi said after he finished explaining as tears pooled in his eyes again. 

_ ‘I thought we were happy. Were we not?’ _

Suga stayed quiet the entire time Akaashi was explaining what happened.

Then he faced Akaashi and said, **“I’d punch him if I were you.”**

He said that with a straight face. 

Akaashi was stunned by the first thing Suga said and a short silence was created between them until a small laugh escaped Akaashi’s lips. 

Suga smiled and continued,  **“I would want to do that but that isn’t the point. I think he was dumb for ending it like this, a little communication would have been better.”**

**“But I get his point of view too. He said that, didn’t he? That he didn’t want to cause you pain.”**

**“But he is causing pain to me now…,”** Akaashi said. 

**“I think it’s because he rather breaks your heart now than make you watch him die when you care so much for him. I’m sure you know how that feels after, you know, his accident,”** Suga explained.

Akaashi stayed quiet and thought about what Suga said. 

**“Why don’t you calm down a bit here and then go back and talk to him? Talking when you both are angry isn’t optimal and you can’t even have a level-headed conversation,”** Suga suggested. 

Akaashi nodded lightly and as he took a few deep breaths to calm down and properly thought things through. 

Suga’s words were calming and made a lot of sense. 

Suga just looked up at the white sky while sitting beside Akaashi.

He said his piece and it was now up to Akaashi to take the advice or not. 

Akaashi sat there thinking about everything.

About himself.

About their relationship.

About Bokuto’s perspective.

About Suga’s words.

Reflecting Akaashi, Bokuto sat in the cold park, thinking by himself.

About himself.

About their relationship 

About Akaashi’s perspective.

It didn’t take either of them very long to realize that they hated being at odds with one another. 

It didn’t feel right; it wasn’t right. 

Akaashi stood up suddenly, startling Suga.

**“Thank you, Suga! I gotta go!”** Akaashi said as he ran off. 

**“Good luck!”** Suga yelled at him, his expression softening into a smile. 

Akaashi flew off and left the Heavenly Realm. 

At the same time, Bokuto stood up suddenly from the swing and smacked his own face.

**“What the hell is wrong with me?!”** He said to himself.

He produced a weird yell and ran off. 

Both of them headed to Bokuto’s apartment. 

Akaashi reached first, looking for Bokuto in the apartment, hoping he had returned already. 

He searched the entire apartment but Bokuto wasn’t there. 

Wondering where Bokuto would go, he immediately thought of the park. 

Akaashi knew how often Bokuto used to visit that park. 

He began to fly to the park, realizing that it had started to rain after the snow. 

_ ‘How cold Koutarou must be right now…’  _

_ ‘I hope he’s okay.’ _

Akaashi passed through the building and shops that they both saw every day. 

Tears formed in his eyes as he desperately looked for Bokuto.

He desperately wanted to hold him in his arms and to tell him that they should talk and sort it all out. 

He desperately wanted to apologize to him and tell him he didn’t mean the harsh words he said earlier.

He wanted to see Bokuto smiling at him with that look of pure love again.

Flying even faster, his breath quickened. Blood pulsing through his veins rapidly and his heart beating out of his chest.

Finally, at the crossroads near the park, he found Bokuto. 

**“Koutarou!”** He yelled desperately, louder than he had ever yelled

His own voice rang in his ears.

Desperation laced in his cry. 


	23. Chapter 23

Bokuto ran through the pouring rain and trudged through the snow on the ground which made the ground slippery.

He almost slipped and fell multiple times but he kept running.

He had to get home.

Bokuto reached the crossroads and jogged in place as he waited for the pedestrian light to go off. 

There were hardly any cars at that time but he still abided by the rules. 

The light turned green and Bokuto sped up; eyes locked in front of him, looking at the distance where his apartment was located.

From the opposite direction, Akaashi was flying towards the crossroads. 

**“Koutarou!”**

Bokuto heard Akaashi’s voice. 

It was more of a shriek.

He looked in the direction of the voice and saw Akaashi’s face and a truck coming at him at full speed. 

He mouthed,  **“I’m sorry.”**

Then he blacked out. 

Following Akaashi’s yell, Bokuto was hit by a truck that was going over the speed limit. 

Akaashi experienced that same sensation that he felt when he failed to protect Bokuto on that spring day. 

That surge of pain; the sign of an event that cannot be changed. 

Akaashi shrieked for dear life as he flew to Bokuto at once. 

The utter fear in his expression and voice. 

Tears were streaming down his face non-stop.

He couldn’t even see anything properly.

He yelled and yelled for help. 

No one heard him but the people nearby quickly called for an ambulance.

Akaashi felt his heart drop as he held Bokuto in his arms. 

Dropped to the pits of hell, shattering into a million pieces.

The broken pieces pierced him and brought pain that could only be described as burning and freezing. 

It felt as if he was being stabbed by a million knives. 

Akaashi could feel warm blood oozing out of Bokuto’s body. 

There was so much blood. Just so much blood. 

His torso and legs were soaked in blood.

It wouldn’t stop flowing out. 

Akaashi felt his heart being ripped out of his chest. 

**“No...No...No...This can’t be!”**

**“Open your eyes, Koutarou!”**

**“Koutarou…,”** He croaked, uncontrollably sobbing. 

**“P-please don’t l-leave me like this.”**

**“Please…”**

**“I h-haven’t even a-apologized…”**

His heart rate was rapid, his vision blurry, his breath narrow. 

A constricting feeling in his chest, he felt as if he would pass out. 

Bringing himself back to his senses momentarily, he ripped out a piece of cloth from his garment and tried to stop the blood from flowing out.

But to no avail, Bokuto was bleeding internally as well and very quickly. 

He had never seen so much blood ever. 

He was so afraid. 

So afraid to lose Bokuto. 

Insurmountable pain bubbling up inside him.

Akaashi cried and cried for Bokuto to open his eyes and apologized over and over again. 

But the only motion from Bokuto was his blood flowing out. 

Nothing else moved. 

Akaashi begged him to wake up again and again like a broken record. 

Tears streamed down his face and fell all over Bokuto’s face. 

Bokuto was already deathly pale.

Akaashi held Bokuto’s face and cried,  **“Please, I beg you! Open your eyes, Koutarou! I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”**

Then Akaashi felt Bokuto stir. 

Akaashi momentarily stopped for a second. 

**“Koutarou! Koutarou! Stay with me!”** He yelled. 

Bokuto reached for Akaashi’s face with his hands trembling; he found difficulty in making precise movements. 

He had lost too much blood. 

He tried to say something,  **“...”**

He couldn’t manage anything. 

**“Don’t say anything! Save your energy! Stay with me, Koutarou!”** Akaashi pleaded. 

Bokuto, who was already looking ghostly pale, shook his head.

Using the remnants of all the energy he could muster, he managed to croak out a few words. 

**“...I...l..love...y-you…”**

**“...I-I’m…s-sorry…”**

Bokuto said two lines with a smile on his face as he stroked Akaashi’s face.

His hand then dropped to the cold, snowy, and rainy ground. 

**“K-Koutarou!”**

**“K-Kou!”**

Akaashi yelled his Bokuto’s name repeatedly, begging him to wake up, to stir, or show any signs of motion.

But alas, all Akaashi held was the lifeless body of his beloved. 

His beloved remained motionless in his arms and all he could do was cry out helplessly.

Cry out all his pain and agony.

Cursing himself and the world. 

Akaashi never meant for any of this to happen. 

If he had known, he would have never done what he did. 

He wished that he had died instead. 

It was raining and snowing at the same time as Akaashi’s cries echoed into the cold night. 

Unheard by any human but heard by all guardian angels. 

The cry of an angel.

The regret of an angel. 


End file.
